Sustainability appraisal support

PAS is available to support councils undertaking a sustainability appraisal (SA) of their development plan documents.

The sector is still realising that SA has to inform the generation of options and it is not a discrete task or a tick box exercise. SA officers are often the only member of their team that completely grasps the process and they may struggle to convince colleagues of the importance of integrating the sustainability appraisal with other assessments, options development and the planning process.

• PAS support workshop
• Advice note
• Costs
• Contact us

PAS support

One-day workshop

The workshop can be run with up to 15 participants from planning policy, other council departments or other organisations with an interest in strategic planning. It includes:

• legislative and planning context
• options – the ‘raw material’ for SA
• SA: what, why, when and how?
• SA methodology
• group exercises.

Follow-up support

Post-workshop support might include:

• advice sessions
• document review
• critical friend support

Feedback on PAS support for SA

94% of councils who have had our SA support have been satisfied. Participants in the sustainability appraisal workshop often expressed confusion over various aspects of the SA process as well as concern over the length of reports and the time and resources involved. This process is seen as intimidating and there are fears of failing to comply with legislation and guidelines associated with the Strategic Environmental Assessment directive.

The PAS workshop is designed to present participants with ideas to improve some elements of the process while still maintaining legal compliance. Participants have been very positive about this approach and quickly identified the benefits.

Advice note

Sustainability appraisal: advice note (PDF, 92 pages, 4MB)

This advice note has been produced as part of our support offer.  It builds on the guidance contained in the Plan Making Manual and focuses on meeting the requirements of the SEA Directive and the principles for undertaking a sustainability appraisal that adds value to the plan-making process. It provides practical advice on:

• scoping and evidence base
• appraisal
• reporting
• consultation
• decision-making
• monitoring
• resourcing. 

Case studies are used throughout the guidance to illustrate key points. 

Costs

The cost of direct support is subsidised by PAS. Some authorities may be eligible to receive this support free of charge.

The advice note above is also available for download free of charge.

Contact us

Please contact us on 020 7296 6184 or email pas@idea.gov.uk to find out more, arrange for the support to be delivered or ask any questions about the support on offer.