Local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods: planning guidance

Making journeys in physically active ways, including walking, wheeling, (using a wheelchair or mobility aid, pram, scooter), or cycling.

Anchor institutions are defined as large, locally rooted organisations whose long-term sustainability is tied to the wellbeing of the populations they serve. Hospitals, schools and universities, and local authorities are typical examples. Often non-profit making and frequently public sector, however they can also be large private, voluntary and community sector organisations that have a big stake in a local community. They can be large employers, particularly in our smaller towns, spend large amounts of money, own and manage land and assets and deliver public services, all of which will have a big impact on the local area. And, by consciously implementing measures that benefit their local community, they have the ability to reduce inequalities and further support the wellbeing economy.

A circular economy is one that is designed to reduce the demand for raw material in products - to encourage reuse, repair and manufacture by designing products and materials to last as long as possible; and to recycle waste and energy to maximise the value of any waste that is generated - in line with the waste hierarchy.

Community planning is about how public bodies work together, and with local communities, to design and deliver better services that make a real difference to people's lives. Partners work together to improve local services and to ensure that they meet the needs of local people, especially those who need the services most.

They produce two types of plans to describe their local priorities: Local Outcomes Improvement Plans, and Locality Plans.

Community Planning Partnership (CPP) is the name given to all those services coming together to take part in community planning. There are 32 CPPs across Scotland, one for each local authority area. Each focuses on where partners' collective efforts and resources can add the most value to their local communities, with particular emphasis on reducing inequality.

Providing flexible and accessible community-led solutions in response to unmet local transport needs. Using a range of transport options and operating for a social purpose rather than for profit, most are demand-responsive, taking people from door to door, but a growing number are scheduled services along fixed routes where conventional bus services aren't available.

A people-centred approach to local economic development, which redirects wealth back into the local economy, and places control and benefits into the hands of local people.

A flexible service that provides shared transport to users who specify their desired location and time of pick-up and drop-off.

Software that blends the power of a map with the power of a database to create, manage and analyse information, particularly information about location.

The group comprises a number of public bodies and other organisations which play a role in supporting the delivery of great places in Scotland.

Planning regulations define Key Agencies as:

Scottish Natural Heritage

Historic Environment Scotland

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency

Scottish Water

Scottish Enterprise (only in its area of jurisdiction)

Highland and Islands Enterprise (only in its area of jurisdiction)

Regional Transport Partnerships (only in relevant areas of jurisdiction)

Crofters Commission (only in crofting counties)

NHS Health Boards

While legislation cannot specify them individually, the following bodies should have the same level of involvement in the development plan process:

Transport Scotland

Scottish Forestry

Marine Scotland

Architecture and Design Scotland

The group also works in partnership with a number of other organisations that support the planning system, including:

COSLA

British Geological Survey

SportScotland

Visit Scotland

Improvement Service

Planning Aid Scotland

The degree to which a place is suitable or good for living in.

Local Development Plans (LDPs) set out how our local places will change into the future, including where development should and should not happen. They outline how services and facilities such as schools and travel will be provided, and they identify the places and buildings we value and want to protect. They are the main basis for all decisions on planning applications. LDPs should be place based, people-centred and delivery-focused, as outlined in the Local Development Planning Guidance.

One of the two types of plans produced by Community Planning Partnerships – with strong community participation - to describe their local priorities and planned improvements. Local Outcomes Improvement Plans (LOIPs) cover the whole local authority area.

Community-led plans setting out their proposals for the development and use of land and aspirations for its future development. Once completed and registered by the planning authority, they are to be taken into account in the preparation of the relevant LDP.

These are the other type of plan also produced by CPPs, and cover smaller areas within the CPP area. They usually focus on areas that will benefit most from improvement. Locality plans may also be produced for groups who share common interests or features, for example, young people leaving care or vulnerable adults. Each CPP will produce at least one Locality Plan, and some CPPs will produce many. There is no fixed number of locality plans which CPPs must produce, but they must as a minimum produce them for every smaller area in which the local community doesn't benefit from good outcomes which people elsewhere can enjoy. Locality planning aims to meet the needs and ambitions of local people, so the voices of local communities are especially important.

A recognisable place with an offer of different and connected transport modes supplemented with enhanced facilities and information features to both attract and benefit the traveller.

The National Performance Framework is Scotland's way to localise the SDGs (see below). It provides a framework which measures Scotland's progress against the National Outcomes. It uses 'National Indicators' which give a measure of national wellbeing and include a range of economic, social and environmental indicators, with a focus on tackling inequalities.

Our national spatial strategy for Scotland, published 2023. It sets out spatial principles, regional priorities, national developments, and a comprehensive set of national planning policies for the whole of Scotland.

Good-practice guidelines designed to improve and guide the process of community engagement. Community engagement is a way to build and sustain relationships between public services and community groups – helping them both to understand and take action on the needs and issues that communities experience.

Scotland has set a target to become 'Net Zero' by 2045. This means the amount of greenhouse gas emissions we put into the atmosphere and the amount we are able to take out will add up to zero.

A democratic process in which citizens decide directly how to spend part of a public budget.

Based on the same evidence as the Place Standard tool, they provide a consistent and comprehensive focus for where place impacts on the wellbeing of people and planet. They match the key 20 minute neighbourhood features and fall under five overarching themes of movement, spaces, resources, civic, and stewardship.

A person-centred, bottom-up approach used to meet the unique needs of a community in a place by working together to use the best available resources and collaborate to gain local knowledge and insight. By working collaboratively with the people who live and work locally, it aims to build a picture of the system from a local perspective, taking an asset-based approach that seeks to highlight the strengths, capacity, and knowledge of all those involved.

A common framework for considering place-based working. Provides a mechanism for how place based working can be implemented effectively, with the goal of making sure that efforts, investments, and resources are brought together for the greatest overall benefit.

A programme to link and align all place-based funding initiatives to create a coherent approach to building resilient communities, addressing inequalities, and supporting an inclusive, wellbeing economy in local settings.

The overarching context for place-based working in Scotland, it asks all those responsible for providing services and looking after assets in a place to work and plan together, and with local communities, to improve the lives of people, support inclusive and sustainable economic growth and create more successful places.

A tool that used to assess the quality of a place. It provides a simple framework, based on the evidence about how place impacts on health and wellbeing, to structure conversations about a place.

Schemes such as car clubs and bike share where people can use a mode of transport without having to own it.

Six overarching spatial principles set out in NPF4, by which we will plan our future places in Scotland.

The United Nations has set a series of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These are 'global goals' and targets that are part of an internationally agreed performance framework. All countries are aiming to achieve these goals by 2030. In Scotland, these are localised as the National Performance Framework (see above).

The National Transport Strategy 2 Sustainable Travel Hierarchy should be used in decision making by promoting walking, wheeling, cycling, public transport and shared transport options in preference to single occupancy private car use for the movement of people. The efficient and sustainable freight transport for the movement of goods, particularly the shift from road to rail should also be promoted.

The Town Centre Action Plan 2 was published in April 2022 as the Joint Response to the Review of the Town Centre Action Plan. It was developed jointly by Scottish Government and COSLA to respond to the recommendations of A New Future for Scotland's Town Centres. It builds on and reaffirms the commitment to the Town Centre First principle approach and develops a refreshed vision for our towns and the means to achieve it.

The Town Centre First Principle asks that government, local authorities, the wider public sector, businesses and communities put the health of town centres at the heart of decision making. It seeks to deliver the best local outcomes, align policies, and target available resources to prioritise town centre sites, encouraging vibrancy, equality, and diversity.