Architects Derby Archives - Planning Design Ltd

Electrifying partnership with Down to Earth Derby

20th March 2024 by Gary Stringer

Planning & Design Practice (PDP) believe in collaboration and are “electrified” to announce that they have joined Derby’s nature-based regeneration journey by partnering with Down to Earth Derby (DTE) as part of their Corporate Sponsorship programme.

With links to Cornwall’s eco-focused Eden Project, Down to Earth Derby are an independent catalyst for nature-based regeneration, describing themselves as:

‘A movement with a mission to help our communities make living with nature a part of everyday life. Our vision: Derby as a thriving, sustainable city run by happy, healthy, and proud people.’

Planning & Design Practice wholeheartedly agree with their values and vision and decided that we wanted to support them and get involved too. They requested that we bring our design expertise to spruce up the toilet area of their award-winning city-centre community garden and event space, Electric Daisy. Launched in June 2023 Electric Daisy is:

‘A botanical garden meets, late night cocktail bar, in this commercially driven concept. Surrounded by the growing aromats that make their drinks taste so good, customers can sip amongst nature, while providing us with funds to support our wider vision.’

Toilets are not the most attractive thing but are nevertheless essential for a venue such as Electric Daisy. We were able to use our DIY and creative skills to transform a utilitarian looking Portaloo into something which is much more in keeping with the tranquil garden vibe that Down to Earth Derby are trying to achieve.

On a cold March morning six members of our team arrived with a plan, three inside the toilet decorating and three outside constructing cladding and trellis, upcycling old sheds and bits of salvaged wood. The design inside the toilet was created using acrylic paints and now hand painted electric daisies adorn the walls. The woodwork was painted black to modernise and the overall effect was much fresher than before and ready to welcome guests when the venue reopens soon.

Down to Earth Derby’s business strategy and scalability lead Ross Nicholson had this to say after seeing the results:

‘Big shout out to Planning & Design Practice for becoming a corporate sponsor at Electric Daisy and for a great day converting our shabby toilet block (inside and out) into a shed (kind of!) which blends much better with the community garden and events space. A brilliant day’s work, which means we can now crack on with letting nature does its thing – growing stuff up, in and around it. Banging job. Will look great. Thanks so much’.

As well as working on the relaunch of Electric Daisy, Down to Earth Derby have also been commissioned by Wavensmere Homes to create an expansive community garden within its Nightingale Quarter development, on the site of the former Derbyshire Royal Infirmary. The £40,000 pilot project will see an interactive garden and allotment space created on the 18.5-acre and is planned to be unveiled in late spring. If successful the approach will be rolled out across Wavensmere’s city-wide portfolio, creating magnets for nature, wildlife, and people across the city.

Planning & Design Practice had a really great day using all our DIY and artistic skills and look forward to visiting the venue, to raise a glass when Electric Daisy reopens for 2024 on Friday 29th March. See you there!

Planning & Design Practice Ltd is a multi-disciplinary team of town planning consultants, architects and heritage specialists. Based in Derbyshire, we are perfectly located to work nationally for our clients. We offer a comprehensive range of services, specialising in Town Planning, Architecture, Heritage and Urban Design. For more information on our team, or our services, please contact us on 01332 347371 or email enquiries@planningdesign.co.uk

RIBA House of the Year 2023

16th January 2024 by Gary Stringer

Each year the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) holds their prestigious RIBA House of the Year awards, to search for the best architect designed home in the UK, focusing on innovation and quality. Our Senior Architect David Symons discusses the 2023 shortlist and the winner, Green House by Hayhurst and Co.

The RIBA House of the Year prize is always a great place to look for cutting edge design approaches including innovative uses of materials, clever use of space and bold design concepts. We regularly discuss new and innovative projects at our Architectural and Planning Team meetings to make sure we can offer the best advice and insight to our clients about what is possible.

As with the RIBA Stirling Prize earlier in the year, we met as a group last month and I presented the 6 shortlisted homes to our planners, architects, and heritage consultants as the starting point for a discussion about the projects.

Whilst there is less of a focus on London within the RIBA House of the Year awards, the projects are still predominantly located in the South of the country, and it was disappointing to not see more of the midlands and north of the country represented. However, it is great to see this year some projects in more rural areas in the southwest which feel of a similar context to our own areas of work in Derbyshire and the Peak District.

The only project north of London on the shortlist is Hundred Acre Wood by Denizen Works. The house was the winner of RIBA and RIAS national awards and is a Brutalist box of a structure that like the Stirling Prize nominated ‘A House for Artists’ failed to find favour with the team here.

**Figure 1** – Hundred Acre Wood by Denizen Works – another brutalist structure that didn’t find favour with the office – Hundred Acre Wood – Gilber McCarragher

**Figure 2** -A house for artists – the concrete brutalist apartment building that split opinion in the office – A House for Artists © Johan Dehlin – architecture.com

Two of the more interesting projects for us as a team were Cowshed by David Kohn Architects and Made of Sand by Studio Weave, both in rural locations in the Southwest of England.

Cowshed is a striking barn conversion within a farm setting that uses an honest and industrial approach to materials with visible timber roof trusses, profiled metal roofing and exposed blockwork for the internal and external wall finishes. The project split opinion in the office with several of the team feeling the cold and industrial interiors lacked the warmth and coziness they would want to see in a private home. However, we all agreed that national recognition for a converted barn dwelling was a great step in the right direction for unlocking the potential of Class Q barn conversions.

**Figure 3** – Cowshed by David Kohn Architects – a striking example of a rural barn conversion – Cowshed © Max Creasy

Made of Sand is a unique two storey side extension to a traditional stone cottage in Devon. Clad in timber with expressed verticals and diagonals reflecting the structural build-up of the walls. Timber is also exposed within the interior and accentuated with a warm materials palette of brass, cob, handmade terracotta tiles and lime plaster. The extension is an interesting example of a clearly contemporary addition to a heritage building that sets out its own proportions. The extension stands taller than the existing eaves line and projects forward of the principal elevation. These traits defy traditional planning constraints applied to extensions to buildings of this type and character. However, the project demonstrates how this can be achieved whilst still remaining sensitive to the host building.

**Figure 4** – Made of Sand – a bold timber two storey side extension to a traditional property – Made of Sand © Jim Stephenson

The clear winner of our team vote was Middle Avenue by rural Office. The design is a contemporary interpretation of the local arts and crafts vernacular style of the site in Farnham, Surrey. The building features smooth white render external walls with carefully positioned windows and timber clad detailing. The roof is tall and steeply pitched with accentuated hips clad in red clay tiles. The scale of the design allows for stacked flat roof zinc dormers giving a contemporary finish to the roof scape. The interiors use a combination of white plaster, clay brickwork and warm timber detailing to the staircase and walls to create a calm and contemporary atmosphere. The design preferences and values of the team are always becoming clearer the more we get together. Key priorities are; warmth, light and the clever and authentic use of materials in often more traditional forms.

**Figure 5** – Middle Avenue by Rural Office – a comtemporary twist on traditional Surrey vernacular and the office favourite – Middle Avenue © Rory Gaylor

RIBA House of the Year 2023 – the winner

The actual winner of the RIBA House of the Year award as voted for by the RIBA judging panel was Green House by Hayhurst and Co. The project is an innovative example of what a house can be, with a combination of sustainable features that create a unique external appearance and internal environment. The focal point of the building is a rear façade constructed with polycarbonate sheets and galvanised steel cladding. Balconies contain planters of fast-growing bamboo plants to create a living wall at all floor levels. The foliage of the plants will change throughout the year allowing for shade in the summer when needed. The building is constructed using a cross-laminate timber structure with high U-values for the external walls, an air source heat pump and rooftop solar panels – all contributing to the sustainability credentials of the building.

Whilst the project didn’t stand out to us initially due to the somewhat industrial appearance, we can all see why the judges chose the scheme when we delved into the detail of how the building works for its occupants and the quality of the internal spaces it creates. Sustainability and innovation are the overriding principles of the award winner, critically whilst staying within the constraints of a tight budget.

This is a common tension that we come across on many projects where clients have sustainable ambitions but often come up against budget constraints when trying to achieve the results they are looking for.For us, the key to realising a sustainable design is thinking about sustainability as early as possible to set out a sensible construction method and create a highly insulated external envelope from the outset. We use environmental modelling software to calculate the U-values of external wall build ups early in the design process to make sure that the best construction solutions can be applied whilst allowing as much time as possible for us to come up with economical details that will be affordable to build. Thinking about renewable energy technologies that are most appropriate for the site is also key and we find that conversations with energy suppliers can be one of the best ways to unlock grants and funding to help realise these features.

A key theme we have noticed in all awards winning projects is a fantastic relationship between architects and open-minded and ambitious clients. Looking back on 2023 we feel lucky to have worked with a huge array of such great clients. Looking forward to 2024 we are hopeful to build even more strong and positive relationships to deliver fantastic projects for our clients this year.

David Symons, Senior Architect, Planning & Design Practice Ltd

Good things come in threes – Part 3 success for our Architectural Assistant

25th January 202412th December 2023 by Gary Stringer

A further success for the Architectural Team at Planning & Design Practice as our colleague Architectural Assistant Tina Humphreys successfully completes Part 3 of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) education course, which is aimed at those wishing to achieve status as a fully qualified architect in the UK. In this article, Tina describes the process and her future ambitions, which include becoming a PassivHaus Certified Designer.

“I am pleased to say that I have completed my Part 3 Professional Education course in Architecture with the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) and can now register with the Architects Registration Board.

It has been a very long journey in gaining this achievement, a journey which started back in 2008, when I completed a one year course at college for interior design. My university days were spent at Nottingham Trent University and then DeMontfort University where I completed my Master’s degree.

Planning & Design has been supportive throughout my studies and I would like to thank Siegfried Doering, David Symons, and Lindsay Cruddas for all their help and support.

So with a new year just around the corner, (after celebrating with a few drinks over the festive period) what’s next? Before going on maternity leave in 2021 I started a course in which I can learn how to use a program called the PassiveHaus Planning Package (PHPP). This is an Excel software that can be used at the concept stage, taking the project’s location, orientation, construction method and fenestration to assess the energy efficiency of a design. It makes use of several tested and approved calculations to yield a building’s heating, cooling, and primary energy demand.

Becoming a PassivHaus Certified Designer is also a goal I would like to achieve. There are around 1,500 PassivHaus-certified buildings in the UK and it is growing more popular, and there are many other buildings informed by PassiHaus principles but are not officially certified, and some even exceed its energy efficient standards.

Sustainable design is an important aspect for me and is crucial for mitigating environmental impact, improving energy efficiency, promoting health and well-being, achieving long-term cost savings, adapting to climate change, fulfilling social responsibilities, and meeting regulatory requirements and market demands. As the global focus on sustainability intensifies, architects play a key role in shaping the built environment to be more environmentally friendly and socially responsible.”

Tina Humphreys, Part 3 Architectural Assistant, Planning & Design Practice Ltd

“We are extremely proud of Tina’s determination and effort juggling the pressures of parenting, professional practice, and her studies to achieve this landmark stage in her career and the title Architect. She has worked hard to dig into every aspect of the architectural profession from health and safety to contract management and company structures and has always generated debate within the office by sharing her new knowledge and informed opinions. We are excited to see Tina grow within her new role and are looking forward to supporting her sustainability ambitions for the benefit of the practice and our clients in the future.”

David Symons, Senior Architect, Planning & Design Practice Ltd

Sustainability and Planning & Design

As a practice Planning & Design have been researching and promoting a number of sustainability initiatives, including Passivhaus, Code for Sustainable Homes (CSH) and the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI).

From the earliest discussions with our clients we recognise the importance of outlining the advantages and benefits of building with sustainable aspects incorporated into their projects and ways in which they can reduce the carbon footprint of their project. This is obviously in consideration of their construction budget.

Our approachable and experienced design team is comprised of architects, architectural assistants, designers and technicians, who offer a comprehensive architecture service from concept through to completion.

Do you have the desire to build your own PassivHaus home or sustainable project fit for the future and to combat climate change?

If so, please get in touch on 01332 347371 and we can help you through the process and explain how you can incorporate the latest innovations into your project.

Unveiling the Impact of AI in Architecture: Navigating Tools and Innovations

22nd November 2023 by Gary Stringer

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has the potential to seamlessly integrate itself into architecture, reshaping how designers, architects, and planners conceive and craft spaces. In our multidisciplinary design firm, we’ve embarked on an exploration of AI’s diverse influence within our field, delving into various AI-driven tools and methodologies to see if we can harness these for the benefit of our clients.

In the realm of text generation, AI tools like ChatGPT have shown promise, aiding in drafting articles and generating written content (including this very post!). However, when it comes to image generation for design work, tools like DALL E stand out as interesting resources. DALL E enables users to generate diverse and unique images with text-based prompts. We see these tools as being somewhat helpful to generate ideas and precedent images at the start of the design process, but there is definitely not enough control and detail to aid specific design work.

Figure 1 – DALL E text generated image, prompt; “2 storey rural red brick dwelling with bay windows and slate tile roof in an illustrative and architectural style”

AI-powered rendering software such as Veras offer more control by basing image generation on basic 3D models. Vera is a plug-in for SketchUp that can use simple base models to create varied fully detailed renders. Yet, despite the theoretical advantages, unexpected artifacts and complexities necessitate meticulous corrections, which can slow down the process.

We have had the most success so far with tools like Vizcom.ai. Vizcom can convert simple line sketches into striking visuals. Additionally, AI tools integrated into Adobe’s suite, such as generative fill in Photoshop, offer potential in improving our workflows. However, our key focus is always to create consistent and repeatable images that achieve the design intent we are looking for, which isn’t always possible with these tools.

Figure 2 – Vizcom ai visual created from line drawing. Before and after, prompt; “rural house red brick”

Nevertheless, our core visual creation process remains rooted in established methods involving 2D and 3D CAD software such as SketchUp and Revit, coupled with rendering software like Enscape. These tools provide us with precise control over generating early-stage conceptual visuals or intricate final renderings, aligning closely with our meticulous design approach.

Another intriguing aspect of AI’s influence in architecture is generative design. We’ve explored tools like Dynamo for Revit, utilizing parameters to generate test options and forms. Autodesk’s Forma software has extended this capability, enabling the assessment of multiple iterations of site form and massing, particularly beneficial in the master planning phase for larger-scale development projects.

In our pursuit of innovation, we have a commitment to staying updated on technological advancements, continuously experimenting with AI-driven tools. However, while AI presents immense potential in reshaping architectural workflows, our approach remains grounded in time-tested practices.

As the possibilities for AI in architecture continue to expand, we’re eager to harness these advancements to further elevate our ability to craft high quality spaces. We are on the lookout for bold and ambitious clients eager to test these tools and software for their projects, collaborating to explore the possibilities and push the boundaries of what’s achievable in architecture.

David Symons, Senior Architect, Planning & Design Practice Ltd

AI in Architecture: References:

ChatGPT: OpenAI’s ChatGPT
DALL E: OpenAI’s DALL E
Vizcom.ai: Vizcom.ai
SketchUp: SketchUp
Revit: Autodesk Revit
Enscape: Enscape Rendering Software
Dynamo for Revit: Dynamo for Revit
Autodesk Forma: Autodesk Forma

Our approachable and experienced team comprises architects, architectural assistants, designers and technicians. Our architects have true international expertise having worked on large scale projects in Russia, Germany, Spain, Canada and the United States as well as across the UK. We offer a comprehensive design service through all the RIBA work stages from concept through to completion.

Planning & Design Practice believe in good architecture, to improve our quality of life, create real value and to drive sustainable development, creating robust, resilient homes and buildings to face the challenges of climate change. For a no obligation consultation to discuss your project or property, please get in touch on 01332 347371 or enquiries@planningdesign.co.uk

Inspired design for infill plot

20th September 2023 by Gary Stringer

Planning & Design Practice are pleased to announce the granting of outline permission with all matters reserved, except access, for the construction of a new home in South Derbyshire. The proposal constitutes limited infill between existing properties.

The site is located in the Derbyshire countryside within a linear development of houses and within the curtilage of a house situated on the end of a small cluster of homes.

Whilst the outline application was submitted to determine the principle of residential development in the location, the application was accompanied by an illustrative site plan, as shown below in Figure 1, prepared by the Architectural Team at Planning & Design Practice.

It is envisaged that the key characteristics would be as follows:

A single dwelling of modern design and finished with locally sourced stone or brick;
Highly sustainable low carbon dwelling built to exacting standards;
Use of renewable energy and sustainable forms of heating;
Use of existing access to the dwelling to be widened;
Sufficient space within the site for the parking and turning of vehicles; and
Amenity space to be located to the north of the new dwelling.

The development will be sympathetic to the local character and appearance of the street scene and wider local area. Additionally, the siting of the plot will ensure no adverse impact on neighbouring amenities.

It has been successfully argued that the proposal would constitute a sustainable form of development, in accordance with the aims of the National Planning Policy Framework and Development Plan.

Gaining planning permission is a key step in almost any development.

Planning & Design Practice Ltd is a multi-disciplinary team of Town Planners, Architects, Architectural Assistants and Design Professionals. We can take a project through from inception to completion but we also offer the flexibility to engage a client’s own architects and provide a planning service, whilst our design team can also work with clients who have engaged other town planning professionals.

Our values are rooted in friendly service, integrity, teamwork and meeting client’s expectations. We provide honest and sound advice, mediate when required and maintain high professional standards. We aim to build strong and lasting relationships with our clients and we are always pleased to work with architects and other professional companies.

Contact us for a no obligation consultation to discuss your project or property on 01332 347371 or email enquiries@planningdesign.co.uk

Megan Askham, Planner, Planning & Design Practice Ltd

New barn boost for agricultural business

25th September 202319th September 2023 by Gary Stringer

Planning & Design Practice are pleased to announce that planning permission has been secured for the erection of an agricultural barn to be used in connection with a small agricultural holding in South Derbyshire.

The building will provide much needed dry and secure storage for farm machinery and hay. The machinery includes a tractor, baler, trailer, mower and topper mower. The size of the barn has been carefully devised to reflect the operational needs and is considered to be commensurate with the current farming activities. The barn will be a traditional, modern agricultural building. The materials will consist of blockwork with a timber clad roof.

There are currently a number of barns on site which are in varying conditions, with some being dilapidated. These will be demolished, removing a total of 195m2 of floor space to be replaced with the proposed barn of 200m2. This will provide more secure and efficient storage compared to what is currently existing within the site.

In line with our clients brief our Architectural Team, in collaboration with the Planning Team, prepared a scheme that would sit comfortably within rural surroundings of the site. This includes the location towards the south western boundary of the northern field, bounded by hedgerows and trees.

Additionally, the scheme took into consideration the potential impact on neighbouring residents so is located a sufficient distance away from residential dwellings.

Supporting agricultural development

Obtaining planning permission in the countryside can bring about significant gains and help to maximise the value of your rural property. However, development in the countryside is subject to strict planning controls which can make obtaining planning permission very difficult. Our RTPI Chartered planning experts have vast experience of working on projects for homeowners, landowners and farmers in rural areas including agricultural buildings, barn conversions, Certificates of Lawfulness and farm diversification schemes.

We provide honest and sound advice, mediate when required and maintain high professional standards. We aim to build strong and lasting relationships with our clients and we are always pleased to work with architects and other professional companies.

Contact us for a no obligation consultation to discuss your ideas for your property on 01332 347371 or email enquiries@planningdesign.co.uk

Megan Askham, Planner, Planning & Design Practice Ltd

Construction of New Orthopaedic Building and Demolition of Existing Workshops to Provide Replacement Parking

5th September 202323rd August 2023 by Gary Stringer

Planning & Design Practice are pleased to announce the approval of a new orthopaedic ward at Florence Nightingale Hospital, in Derby. The new ward is proposed to be located on what is currently a visitor car park, which is also host to a couple of workshops which have been proposed to be demolished.

The new orthopaedic ward aims to reduce the current and future waiting list size, offer high quality care and provide a solution to the capacity and demand issue for orthopaedic care in Derbyshire. Derbyshire orthopaedic services currently face issues regarding capacity and demand imbalance created by annual growth in patients requiring surgery, and loss of bed capacity to medicine over the winter periods and during the Covid-19 pandemic resulting in extended waiting periods. The scope of the project includes a three-floor new build development to accommodate three orthopaedic laminar flow theatres, pre-operative assessment rooms, anaesthetic rooms, scrub area etc, alongside four 4 bed bays, 18 single rooms and four HDU step-down beds. The development aims to achieve the following:

The new facility would improve productivity by an average 661 patients per year due to a full 12 months’ worth of productivity.
Waiting List Initiatives (WLI) will be reduced as all activity will be in core time.
There will be a significantly improved patient experience through provision of a ‘one-stop-shop’ for pre-operative assessment and surgery, and reduced waiting times leading to improved outcomes.
Activity will be maintained throughout the year resulting in shorter waiting times which is a patient benefit expressed in QALYs in the economic model.
Additional productivity will help to clear the backlog of circa 1,742 patients waiting for hips and knees.
The development would offer enhanced training opportunities with the training theatre facilitating the recruitment of clinical fellows.

PDP wrote a Planning, Design and Access Statement explaining how the proposed development complied with Derby City Council’s planning policies, and explained the benefits of the project, which was submitted alongside drawings provided by Gilling Dod Architects. The proposal was subsequently recommended for approval by the planning officer, stating that:

“the proposed development of a new orthopaedic unit on the community hospital site would significantly enhance the provision of health facilities and increase patient capacity for the hospital… It is acceptable in terms of the criteria in Policy CP21 and would accord with the intentions of relevant Local Plan Policies and over arching guidance in the NPPF which promotes economic and sustainable development and high quality design.”

Over the last 20 years, Planning & Design Practice have worked with and for a wide range of public sector and not-for-profit bodies including the NHS, Government Agencies, District and Unitary Local Authorities, County Councils and Town/Parish Councils. A number of our senior team have extensive experience of working in the public sector and this undoubtedly helps us to understand the requirements of public bodies. For more information or to discuss your project please contact us on 01332 347371 or email enquiries@planningdesign.co.uk.

Emily Anderson, Planner, Planning & Design Practice Ltd

Revisiting a redeveloped Lenton Gardens

22nd August 2023 by Gary Stringer

A visit to an award-winning housing development bought back memories of student life for our Part II Architectural Assistant Tina Humphreys. Here she looks at the redevelopment of the Lenton Gardens estate in Nottingham.

The housing scheme in Lenton Gardens by jtp Architects has won a variety of awards such as LABC East Midlands Building Excellence Awards 2016- 2017 for Best Social or Affordable New Housing Development and was also shortlisted on the RIBA East Midlands Awards 2018 Regional Awards.

Back in 2014 I was in my first year of university studying architecture and living in student accommodation in Lenton, which is a converted historical industrial building. Opposite the student halls was this bleak and rundown site which had 6 high-rise residential towers of brutalist-style architecture. Concrete prefab façade with small windows and a very monotonous style. There were green spaces surrounding the towers but nobody used it or in fact dared to walk through it!

In 2012 Nottingham City Homes and Nottingham City Council made the decision to replace the existing residential tower blocks with new accommodation of better quality and to create a better way of life. The brief was to bring back key movements through the site from north to south and east to west. In addition, the aim was to provide a mix of affordable family housing and as well as homes for the elderly, and to provide a sense of community with cafe’s and office spaces. To do this jtp Architects worked closely with the Lenton community by holding drop in sessions and workshops during the concept stage and reporting on the feedback they received about the layout and design of the new homes.

The final result is a good mix of flats, semi-detached houses, detached houses and bungalows, with soft landscaped green spaces in between. The architectural style uses traditional red and blue brick and white render with some traditional features from housing within Lenton area but in a modern way.

The scheme also incorporates sustainable features such as PV panels and meets, what was back then the Code for Sustainable Homes level 4.

Tina Humphreys, Part II Architectural Assistant, Planning & Design Practice Ltd

Senior Architect joins Planning & Design Practice

25th July 2023 by Gary Stringer

Planning & Design Practice are excited to announce further expansion of its architectural team with the addition of Senior Architect David Symons.

David is an RIBA Chartered Architect who studied architecture at the University of Nottingham, and with experience working in practice in both the UK and Canada.

Prior to Planning & Design David was Project Architect as part of a practice of 60 and responsible for constructions budgets upwards of £20M. David has experience leading multi-disciplinary teams and working with diverse clients including local authorities, property developers, and top-ranking higher education institutions on projects ranging from town centre regeneration utilising government future high street funding, commercial office fit outs and university projects throughout the West Midlands and Nationally.

David worked for a time in Vancouver, Canada for a large practice producing detailed designs and feasibility studies for large-scale mixed-use master plans, residential and office high-rises. He also has strong local knowledge having previously worked in the residential and domestic architecture sector in the East Midlands for 5 years, gaining an understanding of the physical and planning context of the area and developing a keen ability to translate a client’s design ambitions into reality.

On joining the practice, David Symons, Senior Architect at Planning & Design said:

“Having experience working on projects from the smallest to largest scale, it is great to be joining the Planning & Design team to assist with a strong existing portfolio of varied projects and during a period of growth in domestic enquiries and larger developer schemes. Having assisted with implementing transformative projects in other areas of the country, it is fantastic to be joining the team with such strong local connections during a time of great growth and change for Derby in particular.

I am excited to have the remit to apply creativity and innovation to all stages of the Planning and Design process with a team that are skilled and equipped to delivering fantastic projects.”

Michael Bamford, Director at Planning & Design said:

“We are excited to welcome David to the Architectural Team as Senior Architect. David is an enthusiastic Architect with a strong portfolio of large and small-scale projects that demonstrates his understanding and ability to work towards delivering the development that Clients want.

David’s early career working in Canada and the UK system has given him a broader understanding of the Architectural process and how this relates to securing planning permission and delivering projects as well as a good understanding of the complexities of designing within a historic environment, something which is vital in the work we do at Planning & Design.

David will be an integral part of the growth of our Architectural team over the next twelve months and we look forward to his role in supporting the team in achieving projects we can be proud of.“

Planning success in the Peak Park for dilapidated stone barn

24th July 202319th July 2023 by Gary Stringer

Planning & Design Practice is delighted to announce that planning permission has recently been secured for the change of use, conversion and extension of an existing dilapidated stone agricultural building to form a single house in the Peak District National Park.

The application site is located within a beautiful hamlet of Ible which comprises of a number of historic buildings including traditional stone and brick farmhouses, converted barns and more modern agricultural buildings. The subject barn proposed for conversion only measures approximately 6m x 4m internally, so careful consideration of the internal layout was required. It soon became apparent that an extension was required to achieve an acceptable level of internal habitable accommodation.

A collaborative approach between Planning & Design Practice Ltd’s in-house Architects, Heritage Specialists and Town Planners was required to produce a sensitive but functional scheme. The proposed conversion would comprise an open plan kitchen/living area and bathroom on the ground floor and a double bedroom at first floor level. As part of the application, it is proposed to install 2 no. roof lights and erect a single storey lean-to extension off the rear (west) elevation.

Figure 2: Proposed elevations

The project led by our Associate Director Andrew Stock successfully built a case to demonstrate that barn should be identified as a non-designated heritage asset, worthy of protection, thus making it eligible for conversion to an open market dwelling when assessed against policies DMC5 and DMC10 of the Peak District National Park Development Management Policies (2019).

The application was accompanied by a comprehensive Heritage Report which outlined the significance of the barn which helped inform the Local Planning Authority in their assessment of the application. The application was also accompanied by a Structural Report, prepared by Robert Morten Consulting Engineer, which concluded that the barn was in significant need of immediate repair thus providing further emphasis for an alternative long term viable use, open market residential use in this case.

The barn makes a positive contribution to the landscape and the special qualities of the Peak District National Park. The retention and preservation of the building was therefore important consideration given that it is no longer in agricultural use and is slowly falling into a state of disrepair. The application proposed a new use for the barn which consequently would secure its long-term future.

Gaining planning permission is a key step in almost any development. Planning & Design Practice Ltd is a multi-disciplinary team of Town Planners, Architects, Architectural Assistants and Design Professionals, and Heritage Specialists. We can take a project through from inception through to completion, but we also offer the flexibility to engage a client’s own architects and provide a planning service, whilst our design team can also work with clients who have engaged other town planning professionals.

We have extensive knowledge about the policies and procedures of individual Councils and the approach taken by planning officers and Councillors.

For a free, no obligation consultation to discuss your project, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with Andrew Stock, Associate Director – Chartered Town Planner at Planning & Design Practice Ltd on 01332 347371.

Electrifying partnership with Down to Earth Derby

RIBA House of the Year 2023

RIBA House of the Year 2023 – the winner

Good things come in threes – Part 3 success for our Architectural Assistant

Tina Humphreys, Part 3 Architectural Assistant, Planning & Design Practice Ltd

David Symons, Senior Architect, Planning & Design Practice Ltd

Sustainability and Planning & Design

Unveiling the Impact of AI in Architecture: Navigating Tools and Innovations

AI in Architecture: References:

Inspired design for infill plot

New barn boost for agricultural business

Supporting agricultural development

Construction of New Orthopaedic Building and Demolition of Existing Workshops to Provide Replacement Parking

Revisiting a redeveloped Lenton Gardens

Senior Architect joins Planning & Design Practice

Planning success in the Peak Park for dilapidated stone barn

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