Local planning pack - England

To help you make the most of your voice, we've produced a set of leaflets which give you the power to influence local decisions and protect the wildlife which is important to you.

Please see our downloadable documents for more help and information.

What to do before a case

Use your local knowledge to influence development at an early stage.

By understanding the planning system and how to respond to planning applications, you may be able to prevent a harmful development, or even enhance a proposal's value to wildlife.

What to do now

When dealing with a live planning application, you will need to be objective and decide if there is a genuine case.

Wasting time on a weak element of your campaign may undermine other legitimate planning concerns.

Find out the key questions you need to ask in order to build a case for protecting wildlife through the planning system.

How to gain local support

The more people who know what you are trying to achieve, the more support you will likely get for your campaign. Find out how to get your local media and local politicians involved.

Get more information on specific species, as well as more detailed planning advice from our list of useful contacts.

Key contacts to find out more detailed advice:

• Amphibian and Reptile Conservation
• Buglife
• Butterfly Conservation
• Department of Communities and Local Government
• Defra
• Natural England
• Planning system: Having your say
• Plantlife
• Royal Town Planning Institute
• The Bat Conservation Trust
• The Environment Agency
• The Mammals Society
• The Planning Inspectorate
• The Town and Country Planning Association
• The Wildlife Trusts
• Woodland Trust