The first review of the relationship between public art and the planning system in England for 15 years has just been published by the public art think tank, ixia. The report, Public Art and the Planning System and Process in England, has been prepared in response to the growth of public art that has come about through developments that require planning permission, or have a connection to the planning system and process. The report highlights increasing evidence of support for public art, but states that the impact of this is limited in realising new works, due to narrow definitions and restrictive practices. It points out that success in delivering public art is dependent upon a combination of vision, policy, strategy and expertise, and suggests that although a set of good practice principles has evolved for commissioning public art, these are not consistently applied. It concludes that new approaches to planning negotiation can provide new opportunities to extend work.
Ixia consulted with artists, policy makers and delivery organisations within the public and private sectors in their research, and the report is aimed at those involved with public art commissioning. For non-planners there is advice on how the planning system works, as well as guidance on the inclusion of public art within the Local Development Framework process and on the preparation of a supplementary planning document for public art. It is recommended that local authorities should enable developers to appoint public art expertise and artists at the inception of their developments, to prepare public art statements for inclusion within planning applications.
Published: 27-08-2007