A3.4: Collaborative working

The delivery of any large development project is a product of a number of individuals and stakeholders, all of whom will need to be involved throughout the entire process. Without the positive engagement of all key players the likelihood of a quality outcome will be severely compromised. A reactive (rather than pro-active) stakeholder will loose its opportunity to inform and influence the evolution of a project and often results in abortive work for all parties. Similarly an applicant / developer / scheme promoter that fails to communicate with other stakeholders is likely to suffer increased uncertainty and significant delay.

A regular question asked by local authorities is how they can engage in a proactive and collaborative manner without prejudicing any formal decision. The ATLAS approach is based on the principle that commitment is to the process not the outcome. A collaborative approach will provide the opportunity for all relevant issues and potential solutions to be fully explored. Ultimately the formal decision will be a matter of the overall planning balance.

For the Local Authority the issue of corporate commitment is critical. Virtually all statutory functions will be impacted on by the success or failure of large development projects. In a number of ATLAS projects it has been necessary to engage with those outside the traditional ‘planning department’, including at senior corporate level to explain why the decisions that are taken now will impact on their wider areas of activity.

The new spatial planning process will assist to draw various stakeholders together under a ‘development team’ style approach, understanding that issues beyond pure physical land use planning must be addressed through large projects. In those projects where genuine corporate commitment has been achieved, the process and resulting outcomes are proving to be demonstrably better.