Every year, World Town Planning Day offers a moment to reflect on the power of planning – how it shapes the places we live, supports growth, tackles environmental challenges and builds community. For PNPR, much of our work involves communicating complex planning issues to professional audiences, and so we like to take the opportunity to […]

LRG has published its first ever Sales Report – Property Pricing in a Pragmatic Market – written by PNPR. The Autumn 2025 publication marks the start of a quarterly series that will examine the dynamics of the residential property sales market across England and Wales. Timed ahead of the November Budget, the report combines national […]

PNPR has been doing PR for Boyer since 2021 and as the planning consultancy celebrates its 40th birthday, I’ve been looking back on a fascinating four years. We’ve covered the big themes shaping planning and development – from Green Belt and new towns to housing delivery, environmental policy, design, devolution and funding. And alongside that, […]

Yesterday the House of Commons’ Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee issued a first report on The Future of the Planning System in England.  This follows the 2020 Planning White Paper, Planning for the Future which proposed some radical changes to the planning system. Read my digest of the very interesting points made in the […]

People in Planning: Considering Consultation Content is the first in a series of e-books on consultation in planning published by Bang the Table. Find out more about the book’s content and download a copy here.

Find out more about the book launch here.

In the summer of 2020, Penny Norton, as a member of the Consultation Institute (tCI)’s Environment Working Group, designed a research project for a joint initiative between tCI and APSE (Association for Public Service Excellence).

Communicating Construction: insight, experience and best practice is a collection of essays on PR in construction, each covering a specific aspect of the construction sector and sits alongside Promoting Property: insight, experience and best practice as a guide to the sector, written by those who know it best. It fills a much-needed knowledge gap and has been a real pleasure to edit.

With Promoting Property, published and the height of the first national lockdown, it was great that Women in Property offered to host a webinar based around the book’s content and some of the book’s chapter authors presented on their areas of expertise.

Early in 2020, Penny Norton jointly set up The Consultation Institute’s Environment Working Group which exists to support organisations in engaging on environmental issues.

Promoting Property: insight, experience and best practice is now published by Routledge and is widely available. The book is a collection of essays on PR, each covering a specific aspect of the property sector and is the companion to Communicating Construction: insight, experience and best practice.

This time two weeks ago a housing association might have been running or contributing to a consultation event for a proposed scheme – providing there was enough hand sanitizer to go round.  But what a difference a fortnight makes.  Today all public meetings and construction work is banned, and any ongoing work is taking place […]

Penny Norton contributes a chapter to Regulation of Extractive Industries, to be published by Routledge in 2020.

Penny Norton speaks at the TCPA’s seminar on Getting Public Participation Right following her contribution to the TCPA Practical Guides – Guide 11: People, planning and power which was launched at the event.

I was delighted to speak at the TCPA’s seminar on Getting Public Participation Right yesterday and to have contributed to the TCPA Practical Guides – Guide 11: People, planning and power which was launched at the event. My presentation, ‘What constitutes good public participation?’ was a largely theoretical overview of my knowledge as an Associate […]

Penny Norton has signed a contract with Routledge to produce a guide to property PR.

For any builder involved in development projects, communication with local residents usually starts during the planning process. But it doesn’t end there. Once you’re on site, the immediate community, local groups and potential occupants will all want to understand what’s being built and the timescales involved. They’ll be the first to complain about bad parking, […]

At the end of November, the TCPA published Planning 2020:  the final report of the Raynsford Review of Planning in England.  The report includes some excellent recommendations but will they change policy on consultation in planning? The final report is an incredibly comprehensive and significant assessment of the English planning system by former housing minister […]

I am frequently asked whether consultation is a legal requirement in planning. The fact that it is impossible to answer in fewer than 100 words exemplifies just how complex community involvement in planning has become. And so I, and other Associates of the Consultation Institute, very much welcome the Interim Report of the Raynsford Review […]

In May, the Government (Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government) held a consultation on revisions to the National Planning Policy Framework – the headline planning policy document from which all other planning policy stems. I contributed to the consultation through The Consultation Institute’s response, which commented specifically on the very opaque legislation / guidance […]

While the property world is being transformed by PropTech, a comparison between most developer-led consultations with those of the late twentieth century would suggest that little has changed:  today’s consultations appear to rely on newsletters, exhibitions and paper surveys, just as they did then. And yet innovative and effective communications tools exist, and have the […]

Penny Norton becomes an Associate of The Consultation Institute (tCI), joining and network of consultants who have considerable expertise in consultation and public engagement.

From the first planning meeting to the last construction vehicle leaving site, building benefits from positive communication with local residents.  And as the way in which people’s approach to communication changes, so too should the construction industry’s.  The internet is changing communication in every context.  Today over 90% households have internet access, 73% adults own […]

Try to envisage a world without Local Plans, the NPPF, Neighbourhood Planning, Localism and CIL and its clear quite how much planning has changed in the last ten years. And the same is true of communication: not only the means by which we communicate but also the manner in which we communicate. The extent of […]

On Friday Penny Norton will be in Belfast presenting to law firm Carson McDowell and the Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action on the importance (and context, structure, issues and techniques) of consultation in planning.

On Friday I’ll be in Belfast presenting to a law firm and the Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action on the importance (and context, structure, issues and techniques) of consultation in planning. I’ll be covering some of the content of my book Public Consultation and Community Involvement in Planning: a twenty-first century guide and Rhion […]

Read the review here.

The law surrounding statutory consultation is extensive. And yet when developers consult on planning applications, there is a stark absence of official guidance, regulation and case law. Why, in a discipline led by professionals – chartered surveyors, planning consultants and lawyers – is the approach to consultation so lacking in professional rigour?  Because in most […]

Consultation can deliver a real insight into a local area, create enduring beneficial relationships and of course provide the information necessary for a comprehensive Statement of Community Involvement (SCI) and ultimately achieve planning success. Yet frequently developers view consultation as a risk – more often than not because of concern that vocal locals may ambush […]

Read the review here.

I am delighted to have been asked to become an Associate of The Consultation Institute (tCI), joining and network of consultants who have considerable expertise in consultation and public engagement. The Consultation Institute fulfils the important role of promoting high-quality public and stakeholder consultation in the public, private and voluntary sectors. Never was there as […]

The CIPR is hosting an event to mark the publication of my book Public Consultation and Community Involvement in Planning: a twenty-first century guide on Tuesday 11 July. The event will take the form of a panel discussion with myself, my co-author Martin Hughes, Kate Bailey of the Landscape Institute and Colin Haylock, Past President […]

The CIPR is hosting an event to mark the publication of Public Consultation and Community Involvement in Planning: a twenty-first century guide on Tuesday 11 July.

Penny Norton’s book Public Consultation and Community Involvement in Planning: a twenty-first century guide is now available to reserve.

My book, Public Consultation and Community Involvement in Planning: a twenty-first century guide will be published by Routledge in July 2017. The twenty-first century has seen significant changes in consultation and community involvement in planning. Changes to the environment in which community engagement exists include an increased legal requirement to consult; a renewed focus on […]

Penny Norton is recognised as a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations for ‘outstanding work in public relations, service to the Institute and personal achievements within the profession’, specifically ‘thought leadership on excellence in property communications’.

Penny Norton’s book Public Consultation and Community Involvement in Planning: a twenty-first century guide is complete and due for publication by Routledge in June 2017.

To receive our white paper, Tackling Apathy in Consultation please email ConsultOnline

Following the success of the online consultation service ConsultOnline, CommunitiesOnline is launched, providing and efficient and effective community relations service during consultation.

From the first planning meeting to the placing of the last brick, property development relies heavily on positive communication with the local community.  But as the way in which people communicate changes, is the development community keeping up to speed, and are we making the most of the benefits that online communication offers? The internet […]

The internet revolution presents the development community with huge potential to transform public consultation on planning applications, but this is yet to be fully realised. Planning authorities are now required to post applications online, local residents discuss and debate development proposals via social media and in blogs, and the media gathers these views to inform […]

Communication with local residents usually starts during the planning process, but it certainly doesn’t end there.  Whether you’re refurbishing an existing building or creating a new scheme, the immediate community, local groups and potential users / purchasers will want to understand what’s being done and the timescales involved. They may also be interested to receive […]

Article published in Construction Manager, 1 September 2015

Communication with local residents isn’t complete when a school or university is granted planning consent – in many respects it’s just beginning.  The local community – nearby residents, future pupils and staff and the wider community – will need to understand what’s proposed, will want to know the timescales involved, and may be interested to […]

Communication with local residents usually starts during the planning process, but it certainly doesn’t end there.  The immediate community, local groups and potential users / purchasers will want to understand what’s being built and the timescales involved. They may also be interested to receive regular updates.  Equally it may be useful to have the contact […]

Planning permission will break any potential hotel development but is widely recognised as being a bit of a minefield – perhaps more so than ever now public consultation is required for the majority of planning applications. Added, to that local residents are becoming increasing aware of their role in the planning system and how they […]

To receive our white paper, Corporate Social Responsibility for Developers please email ConsultOnline

After running several consultations using the ConsultOnline model it is very clear that the success off ConsultOnline is due to two things: 1/ residents having access to a substantial amount of information, in a variety of formats – enabling them to feel genuinely informed and engaged 2/ the ability of the website to provide excellent […]

To receive our white paper, Why choose online consultation? please email ConsultOnline

The legal obligation to consult on a planning application has existed for many years and following the 2004 Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act, reporting on the methodology, results and impact of a consultation has become a specific requirement.  Simultaneously, localism and neighbourhood planning – not to mention an enhanced media profile for the profession – […]

To receive our white paper, Online Consultation and Perceived Risk please email ConsultOnline

To receive our white paper, Consultation Tactics – Three Staple Ingredients please email ConsultOnline

To receive our white paper, Activism and Negativity – its Impact on Consultation please email ConsultOnline

Scotch Corner Designer Village, the first project run by PNPR’s online consultation service ConsultOnline now has resolution to grant planning consent.

ConsultOnline, a new online consultation service which is owned and managed by PNPR, has been shortlisted for the Cambridge Innovation Awards.

PNPR is delighted to launch ConsultOnline:  21st Century Public Consultation. ConsultOnline is a unique online consultation service which enables developers to consult very effectively and cost efficiently with a specific local community as is required for a planning application. ConsultOnline uses a comprehensive website, email and social media and the process has the benefits of […]

ConsultOnline, the 21st century answer to public consultation, is launched.