Planning Obligations

Planning practice guidance on planning obligations, which can be found on gov.uk here, states that the terms of commuted contributions should form part of the discussions between a developer and a local planning authority and be reflected in any planning obligations agreement.

Agreements should include clauses stating when the local planning authority should be notified of the completion of units within the development and when the funds should be paid. Authorities can also charge a monitoring fee through section 106 planning obligations, to cover the cost of monitoring and reporting on delivery of that section 106 obligation.

Any local planning authority that receives a contribution from development through section 106 planning obligations must prepare and publish an Infrastructure Funding Statement at least annually.

Reporting on developer contributions helps local communities and developers see how contributions have been spent and understand what future funds will be spent on, ensuring a transparent and accountable system.

Detailed guidance and an infrastructure funding statement template can be found on the planning advisory service website. However, the chief planner has written to local planning authorities to remind them of their statutory duty to prepare and publish an infrastructure funding statement where they receive developer contributions via section 106 or community infrastructure levy.

The government is committed to strengthening the system of developer contributions, including section 106 planning obligations, to ensure new developments provide necessary affordable homes and infrastructure. We will provide further details in due course.