The brief
We were commissioned to prepare a Landscape Management Plan for a new residential development on the edge of an existing settlement. The plan was required as part of a discharge of conditions submission, and needed to set out a clear strategy for the long-term management, preservation and enhancement of the new landscape features that the consented scheme had introduced.
Our approach
The plan was structured around the standard 15-year horizon: the first five years dedicated to establishment, ensuring that new tree, hedge and shrub planting took hold and that mitigation features performed as intended; the following ten years focused on ongoing maintenance and management. The vision and objectives section set out, in plain terms, what the landscape was expected to look like and how it should function at each stage of the plan, so that the planning officer, the eventual residents and any future grounds-maintenance contractor would all have a single shared reference document.
The detail
The substantive maintenance schedule covered mowing regimes for the various grassland types, pruning programmes for trees and hedge species, watering during establishment, pest and disease control, weed management, and waste management. Planting and implementation guidelines were included for the works that would still be carried out by the developer or contractor, and the document set out a calendar of inspection visits at which delivery against the plan could be reviewed. The end result is a single management document that is readable for non-specialists, defensible to the planning officer, and operable by the maintenance team on the ground.
Working on a similar project?
If you are preparing a planning application that needs landscape evidence — from a single dwelling to a major EIA scheme — we can help. Tell us about your site and we will respond with a fixed fee and programme within one working day.
