We Can't Stop Planning

We Can't Stop Planning

Author: Samuel Stafford September 5, 2026 Duration: 59:06

Sam Stafford was in Manchester recently and took the opportunity to catch up with old friends of the podcast Lisa Tye, Shaun Knights and Jaimie Ferguson.

Lisa is a Partner at Town Legal, Shaun is a Senior Planning Officer at Preston City Council and Jaimie is a Company Director at Lucid

In a conversation recorded at Reform Radio they discussed, principally, the new NPPF, but also touched upon the current live consultations on standard planning agreements for medium-sized sites and planning powers for mayors in England.

Some accompanying reading.

Planning Teal Paper

Another NPPF Mega-Blog

Standard planning agreements for medium-sized sites

Planning powers for mayors in England

When Should Strategic Authority Mayors Be Able To Reverse Local Authority Planning Decisions?

Wigan Council voices its opposition to five green belt sites being included in the borough's development plan

Some accompanying listening.

Relentless – Stereo MCs

Any other business.

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Samuel Stafford hosts 50 Shades of Planning, a podcast that digs into the often perplexing world of the English planning system. Rather than offering dry policy lectures, these conversations embrace the sector's inherent complexities and occasional absurdities. The aim is to provide a wide-ranging view, bringing in diverse voices from across the fields of planning, property, design, and development. You'll hear from practitioners, thinkers, and critics, each sharing their unique experiences and perspectives on how places are shaped. A recurring series within the podcast, titled 'Hitting The High Notes', features in-depth discussions with leading figures, examining pivotal career moments and influential projects. These talks are structured around six key planning milestones, offering a concrete framework for understanding professional journeys and systemic challenges. By weaving together themes from government, business, arts, and social sciences, this podcast reveals how planning sits at a crowded intersection of politics, economics, and community life. Tune in for thoughtful, sometimes surprising, explorations of the forces that decide what gets built, where, and why.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

50 Shades of Planning
Podcast Episodes
A Framework-Led Conversation [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:05:26
Whilst in London recently Sam Stafford took the opportunity to catch up with old friends of the podcast Simon Ricketts, Andrew Taylor and Mike Kiely. Simon is a Partner at Town Legal, Andrew is Group Planning and Sustain…
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Duration: 1:10:00
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Duration: 1:03:20
The basis of this episode was a series of posts Sam Stafford spotted that Nick Cuff at Urban Sketch had shared on his Prop Views blog about the Parkhurst Road judgement and the implications thereof. Sam asked Nick if he…
Why do places look the way they do? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:11:42
Sam Stafford was at a symposium organised by Create Streets at Hatfield House in June last year called ‘Building for generations’. All of the presentations on the day and the conversations there upon led Sam back to the…
Vibes and Stuff [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:42
Sam Stafford was in Birmingham recently and took the opportunity whilst there to catch up with old friend of the podcast Myles Wild Smith and new friends of the podcast Mike Knott, Bart Shirm and Beth Pywell. Myles is a…
Hitting the High Notes - Richard Schofield [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:06:10
This is another episode in the Hitting the High Notes series, which, if you have not listened to one before, is town planning's equivalent, nee rip off, of Desert Island Discs. During these episodes Sam Stafford chats to…
Emerging Planners [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:16:46
A couple of months ago Sam Stafford saw that Shaun Knights at Preston City Council and national vice chair of the Young Planning Officers Society (POS) had posted on LinkedIn encouraging nominations for POS’ ‘Emerging Pl…
Meet the MPs - Lib Dems [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:03:43
The role of local councillors in the planning system has been a familiar topic of conversation on the podcast in the context of, for example, overturning officer recommendations and the case for a national scheme of dele…
Red Hot Planning Chat [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:03:25
Sam Stafford was in London recently and whilst there caught up with friends of the podcast Hana Loftus, Mike Kiely, Nicola Gooch, Simon Ricketts and Andrew Taylor. Hana is a Director at HAT Projects; Mike is a former Chi…
All Around the World - New Zealand [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:09:19
This is the fourth of a series of episodes being led by the oldest friend of the podcast, Paul Smith. Paul put it to Sam Stafford that debates about the planning system in England tend, for the most part, to focus solely…