Contents

The value of Design Review

The London Borough of Bexley is committed to design review. It is an important part of the development management process, and the reports are used in their decision-making.

The Bexley Design Review Panel benefits everyone involved because it helps to improve design and create a smoother planning journey.

Image showing the design review panel on a site visit

The panel is managed on behalf of the Council by Design South East and is made up of leading professionals in the fields of architecture, landscape, transport, heritage, sustainability and urban design and was established to improve the design quality of the Borough’s evolving built environment. Advice from the panel can add real value by helping to address social, environmental and financial viability issues through considering how schemes will impact communities, identifying areas for more efficient design solutions and helping to unlock higher sale or rental values.

For a relatively small investment, design review:

  • delivers rounded, multi-disciplinary design advice, captured in a concise report that sets out the views of the panel on the proposal and recommendations for next steps
  • provides a forum through which to share and agree the key design principles with the authority at the start of the pre-application process, potentially reducing the cost and time taken in the planning system
  • provides a sounding board for applicants to get feedback on design direction
  • offers a trusted, impartial view, which can be helpful to resolve issues on which the authority and applicant are struggling to find common ground
  • gives weight to a planning application, once the proposal has the support of the panel, because of the commitment of the council has made to the design review process

Maximising the value of design review

Our design review process is constructive and collaborative. It helps to promote dialogue on design issues between the council and applicants and provides a clear, consistent voice on design quality, which can help to speed up the planning process and reduce costs.

Timing is critical though and to maximise the value of design review, applicants should discuss early engagement in the review process with officers, and particularly on larger schemes, discuss how and when to re-engage with the panel at checkpoints along the design timeline.

The value of design workshops

Design workshops are also offered alongside design review. Design workshops are less formal than design review and offer the opportunity for the panel to work collaboratively with the applicant to find solutions to design problems.

Applicants and authorities often find these sessions helpful, either to establish shared design principles at the start of the process or to work together to resolve issues that are holding up progress through the planning system.

Schemes anticipated for Design Review

The Design Review service is available for all pre-application submissions across the Borough – from single householder through to major development. However, applications that would typically be referred to Design Review are:

Large scale developments, for example:

  • structures that would exceed the relevant recommended building heights in Policy DP12 Tall buildings and building heights and/or those considered a tall building, which is defined in this policy as any structure over 25m in height
  • 50+ units of residential accommodation
  • commercial development of 10,000+ sqm
  • a change of use of 10,000+ sqm
  • a development site area of 2+ hectares

Proposals of any scale in areas of sensitivity, complexity, or public interest for example:

  • site allocations in the Local Plan
  • developments affecting significant views
  • proposals affecting heritage assets including Listed and Locally Listed Buildings
  • public realm schemes
  • infrastructure projects
  • developments that are likely to have a major effect upon their surroundings
  • proposals that are likely to set a wider precedent or influence a recurring issue such as infill development

The selection of applications and type of review will be at the discretion of the planning officer. The length of review required will be relative to the complexity of the proposals.