Agenda item

The Board considered a briefing note from the Director of Regeneration and Economy that provided a review of the initial scoping consultation for the production of Coventry Design Codes.

Officers outlined how the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act (LURA) 2023 introduced at paragraph 15F, a requirement for Local Authorities to produce Design Codes which should be considered for planning permissions to be granted.

In September 2025, the City Council adopted its most recent Local Development Scheme (LDS) which set out the initial timelines of development of Design Codes to meet the requirements of the LURA. The timeline noted an initial anticipation of a number of codes being produced to reflect the distinct variety of contexts which were present within the Local Authority area, however that this approach and the number of codes could develop further based upon the findings of public consultation.

The initial stage of consultation took the form of a questionnaire to investigate what our residents viewed as important design characteristics and how they perceived their local context. The findings of this consultation would then inform the future progress and structure of the Design Codes.

Coventry benefited from a range of distinct character areas, and given the authorities tight administrative boundaries, these character areas were often found to be closely adjoining each other, introducing a challenge of how development proposals positively respond to differences in architectural style, scale and spatial characteristics.

In order for individual districts of the city retain their own identity, the design code sought to articulate the defining characteristics of an area, to inform how new development could best contribute to a local sense of place.

Officers worked closely with colleagues in the communications team to explore opportunities for promoting levels of consultation in this process. The findings of the initial scoping consultation were to help inform both the structure and the number of design codes which were produced for the city, drawing upon feedback which highlighted what architectural and character features the city’s residents particularly valued.

In considering the briefing note, the Board questioned officers, received responses, and discussed matters as summarised below:

• That although demographic data such as ward is collected, decisions are not made on a ward-by-ward basis as there can be large variations inside wards, the data location is used in conjunction with how people feel about the areas.
• The team works with the Let’s Talk team to ensure there are translation services available and the questionnaire is accessible to a broad range of people.
• Clarified that Question 7 listed roads that reach the city centre, and some significant roads in the city are not included as they terminate before the city centre.

RESOLVED that the Communities and Neighbourhoods Scrutiny Board (4):

1)  Notes their support of the initial public consultation for the development of Design Codes for Coventry.

2)  Raised the following points on the consultation process:

a.  Request that a link to the online circulation be circulated to members to share on their social media.

b.  There should be further liaison with the Let’s Talk team to ensure accessibility of non-English speaking members of the public and consider how to engage people face to face.