1 of 51

Reducing Invalid Planning Applications A service pattern for digital planning submissions

Show & Tell 9

9 October 2020

2 of 51

Funded by

3 of 51

Partners collaborating:

working with

Open Systems Lab

Project website: www.ripa.digital

Blog: medium.com/@digitalplanning

Twitter: @DigitalPlanTech

Facebook: Facebook.com/Digitalplantech

digitalplanning@lambeth.gov.uk / OSL (Open Systems Lab)

4 of 51

Show and Tell No. 9

  1. Project team sprint:
    1. Alignment workshop
    2. Bucks time recording
    3. Lawful Development Certificate Data
    4. Gov.uk.PAY
    5. Validation requirements
    6. Sharing learnings with Partners
    7. Benefits Case Related

  1. User Researcher updates

  • OSL updates
    • Update on APIs and database
    • Update on Find out if you need planning permission

  • Q&As

RIPA

5 of 51

1. Show & tell: Partner’s sprint

6 of 51

Alignment Workshop

7 of 51

Lawful Development Certificate User Journey

8 of 51

Buckinghamshire Council: time recording

9 of 51

RIPA

  • This sprint we shared with the partners how staff currently record time spent working on a task into Uniform at the Wycombe Area of Buckinghamshire Council.

  • Each of the partners have been looking at whether this could also be an option for them.

  • Lambeth have been exploring this in more detail over this current sprint.

10 of 51

RIPA

  • This sprint, we have setup the time recording in our back office system.

  • We have also create a report that will extract the time recorded information, this will help us get a good idea of the time spent on validating planning applications.

  • Next sprint we will test the setup with a hope to start using the time recording functionality by November.

11 of 51

Lawful Development Certificate Data

12 of 51

RIPA

  • Agent and applicant submissions for existing and proposed lawful development certificates received over the last 4 years
  • Shows self-submission significantly less in most partner authorities
  • Northumberland - exceptionally high self-submissions

13 of 51

RIPA

14 of 51

RIPA

15 of 51

Lambeth

Northumberland

Wycombe

Southwark

Lewisham

Lawful Development Certificate Proposed

18%

39%

1%

14%

11%

Lawful Development Certificate Existing

29%

66%

26%

60%

44%

Percentage of applications averaged over 4-years by type of LDC

(1 April 2017 and 31 August 2020)

RIPA

16 of 51

Gov.UK Pay

17 of 51

RIPA

  1. Council’s IT Architect, Finance, Central Systems & Information teams
  2. Review of existing connections and interoperability (e.g. Lambeth existing connection to Capita Pay360)
  3. Contractual requirements and limitations
  4. Drawing up ideal fields format for Gov.UK with Finance and planning teams to share with MHCLG/Gov.UK: hope to create template for other councils / future adoption
  5. Transaction charges - meet finance teams for agreement
  6. Business Case

CONSIDERATIONS

Gov.UK Pay

18 of 51

Validation Requirements

19 of 51

RIPA

Certificate of Lawfulness

  • Form (or form to same effect)
  • Specify land and use
  • Location Plan
  • Evidence of PD
  • Applicant interest in land
  • Correct Fee

Not subject to local validation requirements

Next sprint: Turn into a flow!

20 of 51

RIPA

Householder

  • Application form
  • Location Plan
  • Site / Block Plan
  • Floor Plans*
  • Elevations*
  • Roof Plans*
  • Site sections*
  • Design Statement
  • Access Statement
  • CIL additional Qs
  • Flood Risk Assessment
  • Heritage Statement*
  • Ecology Reports*
  • Tree Reports*

* Further alignment work required

Possible rule: 1 or more dwellings in Cons Area / WHS, building with 100m2 or more floorspace; all LBC applications; all Major applications

Possible rule: Site is in Flood Zone 2 or 3, or more than 1 hectare in Flood Zone 1 (GIS).

Possible flags: ‘vulnerable uses’; ‘areas with elevated risk of flooding’ (Groundwater / Surface water / Critical Drainage?)

Possible rule: All applications? (What are the consequences of this?)

21 of 51

Sharing learning with partners

22 of 51

RIPA

See the video here

23 of 51

Benefits Case Related

24 of 51

Customer Survey

  • User Research or survey?

  • Questions designed to allow efficient time to collect and measure data

  • Respondees willing to be contacted to dummy run the same application once private beta tool live

  • Include time measurable questions e.g. “How long did it take you to prepare/submit your application.”

25 of 51

  • What is a validation task?

  • Differences in definition amongst authorities / partners

  • Workshop to agree RIPA project to avoid partner differences in data collected/measured

26 of 51

2. Show & tell: User research

27 of 51

RIPA

What we’ve up to this sprint 


  • Conducted 3 usability testings this Sprint (1 residents and 2 agents)

  • Research feedback session with OSL. �
  • Gain 4 more volunteers this Sprint. (From Bucks and Northumberland)

  • Confirmed 4 new research sessions in the next 2 sprints so far.









28 of 51

RIPA

Findings from the last usability testing session:�User group we spoke to:

1 Resident applicants who is familiar with the Planning Portal. 2 Agents who submit application for their clients.

Journey tested:

Prototype V.05 (Figma clickable prototype). End to end journey-’Landing’ page to ‘Application submitted’ page

29 of 51

RIPA

Overall comments:

All 3 participant were able to complete the journey on their own with no major issue except 1 participant were confused at the beginning and didn't immediately find the ‘Start Now’ button to begin using the service. After being prompted, she were able to start and navigate through the pages with no major difficulty.

30 of 51

RIPA

"If this means you only need to fill in the bits of the form you need to then this is quite helpful...This can feel as though you have to do lots of work but in practice it is less work"

- Participant 6

“Clear & simplistic; the text and size of text is good; clearly indicating where you are... It really does help to have the property and its constraints automatically loaded in."��-Participant 7

31 of 51

RIPA

Key findings:

1 Participant sees the page as something that tells a user how to submit a planning application. Participant didn't immediately find the ‘Start Now’ button and said she will click the Planning Portal link to start her submission.

32 of 51

RIPA

Key findings:

Participants finds this page a bit intimidating at first and would like to know if all of the sections are required. But after interacted with the sections, they think the overall experience is more guided & clearer. They also like how the progress is being indicated to them with the tag on the right side of each section. ��

33 of 51

RIPA

Key findings:

Participants were no longer confused of this section with the section above (as they were in previous prototype). They understood it is a separate boundary that we are asking them for. Though, some participants still find the “Draw the site boundary” uneasy to complete, they commented that they do not always clear on where is the access & area need to be condon off etc.��All participants likes the fact that they are now able to see what information the system has for the property already. And they think the constraints section is really useful.

1 commented he prefers to have the triage questions on a separate pages. Participants have no issues filling in the triage questions in one section.

34 of 51

RIPA

Key findings:

Overall, participants thinks the payment methods are pretty standard and thinks we've covered most payment methods. 2 participants comments we should include cheque as well.

35 of 51

RIPA

Other findings highlights:

  • Language and copy. Some terms need clearer definition and content needs more work. �

Eg. material list: "Original building, do you mean what it was like when built or how it is now", “Similar / identical - may be use 'matching'? as similar to what? ��Eg.‘What happens next’: .. “with site visit - maybe need more info about how officer will assess, who else they will talk to other than members of public? or a link that shows some sort of flow chart with how it is going to be dealt with? Also some cases there will need to be a legal agreement.”

  • Cover letter to summarize and support their application: “I would always submit a covering letter...I would like a chance to say I'm a disabled person and I need to be able to use a downstairs bathroom.. May not make a blunt bit of difference but be nice to say that.” - Participant 6

36 of 51

Other findings:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/103VG7eG1FADJkNPfvHfCJV894Rn3ucmROcLcF0PFiVE/edit#gid=0��

37 of 51

Upcoming sprint �

  • Carry out 2 ux testing sessions: 13/Oct ( 2 participants both agents )�
    • Research analysis and research playback in next S&T�
    • Research planning and recruitment for Certificate of Lawfulness�









38 of 51

OSL

Database + API

39 of 51

Digital service

The content and rules-as-code logic of the service (at any given moment in time)

Database

A record of all applications made through the service

User interface

for direct end users

Service API

data to/from third party applications

Rate limits

Access permissions

Database API

data to/from back office systems, registers etc

3rd parties

Software by others

Back office planning system (BOPS)

Analytics queries

40 of 51

41 of 51

OSL

Find out if you need planning permission

42 of 51

43 of 51

OSL

Mapping Article 4s

44 of 51

45 of 51

Q&As

46 of 51

Thank you.

Project website: www.ripa.digital

PROJECT LOG LINK: https://www.ripa.digital/Project-log

Blog: medium.com/@digitalplanning

Twitter: @DigitalPlanTech

digitalplanning@lambeth.gov.uk / OSL (Open Systems Lab)

Open

Systems

Lab

47 of 51

3. Collaboration sessions

48 of 51

RIPA

WORKSHOP: AGREED VALIDATION TASKS

  1. Agree the validation tasks that we will measure

Alpha Categories:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1BZFmOCTJlnZebLcTjXyh7oz1s6Rw8-MYddrPHbymc84/edit#gid=0

49 of 51

RIPA

2. Workshop: FINAL SELECTION Q’S

Customer Survey - agree final selection

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1ykd9u-TnfLZ2epzU6XbkD2BaaE4XYOYi?ths=true

50 of 51

RIPA

3. Workshop

LDC USER JOURNEY PLAN UPDATE (Miro Board)

51 of 51

5. Any other business