Source · Select Committees · Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee
Recommendation 7
7
Reinstate planning apprenticeships and invest in specialist officers for Strategic Authorities and LAs.
Recommendation
The Government must take a more strategic approach to boost the skills and capacity of local planning authorities, starting with reinstating access to funded Level 7 planning apprenticeships for students over the age of 21. The Government must invest in dedicated planning officers for Strategic Authorities and set out its plans for doing so in response to this Report. Each Strategic Authority planning team should include specialist planning skills units to support local authorities, to allow for more effective resource sharing between authorities. This must include a Section 106 62 support service in each Strategic Authority, with a remit to share expertise and advise local planning authorities on Section 106 negotiations. (Recommendation, Paragraph 48)
Government Response
A response document is linked to this report, dated 20 March 2026. Response attribution to this recommendation has not been verified. Read the response document ↗