Place Directorate service plan for 2025 to 2026

What we do

Place delivers key services to residents including:

• the enhancement, maintenance and management of the highway, transport and rights of way networks
• our key open spaces and parks
• the regeneration of Bracknell Town Centre

The directorate provides all aspects of the planning system, including:

• the determination of planning applications
• the setting of local planning policy, including the collection of infrastructure funding
• building control and land charges

Place also:

• delivers Public Health duties, focusing on health improvement, health protection, healthcare public health and public health intelligence and providing services that enhance population health and reduce inequalities
• maintains and enhances the economic prosperity of the borough working in partnership with local businesses, other public sector bodies and investors
• manages the council’s trees, borough ecology and biodiversity and maintaining access to the council’s green assets, contributing to the reduction of carbon emissions in the borough
• manages corporate land and buildings, uses assets to influence and enable delivery of corporate priorities and manages the investment and commercial estate for financial resilience

Overall Place plan for the long term physical and economic growth of the borough. Managing, maintaining and enhancing the safe operation of the borough’s key green and physical infrastructure.​

Service context​

The directorate's focus is to create a safe, well managed and planned borough which responds to the needs of the population and grows sustainably. 

The work of the teams helps to contribute to net zero, improvements in population health and creating a successful place to live, work and relax. 

Service delivery is set against the context of reducing funding and increasing demand. The service seeks to undertake its duties in an effective and efficient way, responding to residents, businesses and the wider legislative context in which the services work.​

Current climate​

The directorate will see changes over the next year including:

• embedding the work of the Property Team including the adoption of an Asset Management Strategy
• embedding the new arrangements for Public Health with the new Director of Public Health, focussing on the structure and budget of the service
• a new Health and Wellbeing Strategy 
• a newly adopted Local Transport Plan
• production of planning guidance and evidence to support the existing and a new borough Local Plan
• implement the  IT system which will be procured for planning, building control and transport, to be operational by autumn 2025
• the implementation of the Building Safety Regulator which will drive changes in Building Control, including an external audit by the Health and Safety Executive

Planning, transport, public health and economic development all have key metrics that will be reported nationally. Planning will also be a focus for improvements in determining planning applications, to align with an increase in planning fees.​

Over the next year Biodiversity Net Gain will become a key focus of work, along with work with the Crown Estate regarding future improvement to The Look Out.​

A planned increase in funding for road maintenance will continue to be a focus for the transport engineering and reactive maintenance teams within highways and transport.​

The council remains engaged in the Berkshire Prosperity Board. This will work to create improved prosperity across the Berkshire geography. The work will be led by Place.

Devolution to create a new Combined Authority is a key area of focus, with the development of data and creation of a proposal for Government to consider, to be prepared with other local authority partners.

Work to demolish the High Street car park and work towards creating development proposals for the Southern Gateway site will be a key focus for teams in the directorate over the next 12 months.

Completion of  an Asset Mangement Plan will create a managed approach to the councils operational, commercial and out of borough estate.

Challenges for the service​

The following challenges exist for the service and are noted within the Place risk register:

• increased demand
• difficulties with recruitment of suitably qualified officers 
• reductions in income

New legislation and guidance will change the way in which services operate. This will create new service pressures and uncertainty. Services affected include:

• Biodiversity Net Gain - this continues to be progressed locally, with limited government guidance and support
• Building Control - the Building Safety Regulator is now in force, but many staff have left the industry creating a shortage of approved inspectors (there remains a backlog of applications)
• Planning - planning fee increases are to be linked to planning performance - these should be introduced in April

Other challenges include:

• the implementation of a major new IT system for planning, building control and transport development - this will require dedicated officer time to successfully implement
• changes to the structure of public health with a new director will require time to bed in - this may lead to further changes over the coming year
• working across Berkshire as part of the Berkshire Prosperity Board and in taking forward devolution will create new work areas and require additional resources to be dedicated to this initiative and will require the need to build new relationships with colleagues from surrounding and nearby councils