Wokingham Borough Council will be seeking views on a new Borough Design Guide Supplementary Planning Document from Wednesday December 21. The guide will provide developers and applicants with advice and guidance on the design process the council expects when preparing schemes for all scales of development.  

The consultation will run until February 15, 2012 with all the details online at www.wokingham.gov.uk from this Wednesday (December 21).

The document will bring the borough’s design guidance right up to date. It will replace a range of older documents, including those which relate to new residential development, house extensions and countryside dwellings, and has a wider scope, encompassing guidance for all types of development. 

In the design guide, the council expects developers of any type or scale of building to achieve a high quality design and to fully justify their approach when requesting planning permission. All schemes will be judged against the Design Guide when the council makes planning decisions. 

Prepared under the umbrella of the adopted Core Strategy, the guide focuses on a character-led approach to development and offers advice about how this can be achieved, as well as the standards that should be adopted by applicants. It also provides advice about different types of development, including house extensions, and the different issues that need to be considered. It is divided into sections to address residential and non-residential development as well as development in the countryside. It also focuses on the specific issues of streets, places and parking.

Intended for use as a web-based document, it is interactive, allowing cross-reference to other relevant policy documents and guidance. The guide will also be available in hard copy for those who do not have access to the web.

Comments about the guide can be made via email to: bdg@wokingham.gov.uk or in writing to Clare Lawrence at PO Box 157 Shute End Wokingham Berkshire RG40 1WR. 

Executive member for planning and strategic highways Cllr Angus Ross said: "We appreciate that we are asking for views over the Christmas holidays and have therefore extended the consultation period to eight weeks.  I would urge as many people as possible to take the opportunity to let us have their views."