Two new AI tools have been unveiled, designed to speed up planning decisions.
One tool is an AI prototype that aims to halve the time it takes to process householder planning applications.
The tool is in early stage testing with Barnet, Camden and Dorset councils. The prototype triages applications, summarises key information and provides planning officers with an initial assessment they can consider when making their decision.
The tool has been created by government together with Google DeepMind, Google Cloud, Faculty and local planning authorities.
The second tool is Extract, which is now available to all councils in England. Extract uses AI to help planning officers convert decades-old planning documents and maps, sometimes with handwritten notes, into readily useable data in minutes.
Householder applications make up nearly 70 per cent of planning applications each year.
It is hoped that by reducing the time spent on straightforward planning applications, more time will be available to focus more on complex applications, including new housing and major developments.
Minister for Data and Modern Digital Government Ian Murray said: "When someone wants to add a bedroom or convert their loft, they shouldn’t be waiting months for a straightforward decision. And planning officers shouldn’t be spending hours digging through decades of paper records when making the decisions that really matter.
"These tools give planning officers better support to make quicker decisions - and give families the answers they deserve, faster.
"This isn’t about replacing the expertise and judgement of planning professionals; it’s about taking admin off their desks so they can focus on the skilled work their communities need most."
Housing and Planning Minister, Matthew Pennycook said: "Our planning system remains heavily reliant on cumbersome paper-based processes that consume the time of expert planning officers and cause delays on even the most routine types of application.
"We are dragging the system into the twenty-first century by harnessing the power of AI to streamline the planning application process, freeing up planners to make quicker and better decisions and reducing unnecessary delays."
