Launching our first open digital planning service

West Berkshire Council was awarded funding from the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) as part of Round 1 of the Planning Software Improvement Fund, to begin a major improvement to our digital services and systems used by applicants and our planning service.

We're pleased to say that after a huge amount of hard work from our Planning, Digital and ICT teams, supported by DLUHC, we're ready to launch our first beta Open Digital Planning service.

Using national datasets, our own which we've made available as open data, and the information entered into the form, the service provides advice for anyone who thinks they might need planning permission in West Berkshire.

With innovative features including the ability to draw a red line around the boundaries of the proposed building area, and pictures accompanying many of the questions to make it easier to understand some of the regulations around planning, this is a big step forward in what we offer online as a local planning authority.

We'll be releasing more open digital planning services this year, and you can use the beta find out if you need planning permission service here.