Planning considerations

In setting a strategic vision for public art, developing planning policy and taking planning decisions, the following planning considerations should be taken into account:

• A long-term policy and strategy for public art requires an evidence base. This could include: studies which identify the social, economic and environmental impact of public art projects; and details about either historic or existing public art policies, strategies and supplementary planning guidance and documents and the public art projects that these have generated.
• A local planning authority should ensure that public art expertise is in place to assist it with the development, implementation and evaluation of a public art policy and strategy. Furthermore, a local planning authority and its public art expertise should ensure that developers appoint public art expertise to oversee the involvement of artists with specific development sites.
• The involvement of public art expertise within a local planning authority could include the development and implementation of public art projects relating to the list of projects to be funded by CIL.
• The involvement of public art expertise and artists with a specific development site should include the development and implementation of a public art plan prior to the submission of a planning application. A public art plan should be submitted to the local planning authority for approval as part of the planning application, and should include details of: why and how artists have and will contribute to a specific development site; the costs of public art projects; the maintenance of public art projects; and the timescale and trigger points for the delivery of public art projects. The details of the public art plan should inform the wording of either Section 106 planning obligations or planning conditions in order to secure its implementation.