If you are planning a development in Coventry, Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) may be an important part of your planning and ecological requirements. Understanding the existing biodiversity value of your site early can help you make informed design decisions, identify opportunities for habitat enhancement and plan how any applicable BNG requirement will be met.
ProHort provides support with BNG Assessments and Biodiversity Gain Plans in Coventry, helping developers, landowners, architects and planning professionals understand the biodiversity value of a site and plan for measurable biodiversity improvements.
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Coventry has an established local approach to biodiversity offsetting, alongside national BNG requirements. Coventry City Council’s published Biodiversity Net Gain Supplementary Planning Document explains how applicants can consider biodiversity impacts, habitat improvements and the delivery of biodiversity gain in the local planning context.
The council’s guidance identifies on-site habitat improvements as its preferred outcome where suitable. Where on-site provision cannot deliver the required result, other options may need to be explored in line with the applicable rules and the planning authority’s requirements. Each proposal must be considered on its own merits.
For developers, this makes it important to consider BNG alongside the site layout, landscape proposals and ecological constraints, rather than treating it as a calculation to complete at the end of the planning process.Â
We cover all areas of Coventry, including the city centre, Earlsdon, Stoke, Whitley, Holbrooks, Walsgrave, Tile Hill, Radford, Binley, and Canley.
A Biodiversity Net Gain Assessment establishes the biodiversity value of a site and considers how a proposed development could affect its existing habitats. It uses habitat information and the applicable biodiversity metric to assess the baseline and calculate the potential change resulting from development and proposed habitat creation or enhancement.Â
A BNG Assessment can help you understand:
Which habitats are present within your development boundary and their condition.
How the proposed layout could affect existing habitats.
The biodiversity units associated with the site before development.
Opportunities to retain, enhance or create habitats as part of the design.
Whether additional on-site or off-site provision may need to be considered.Â
Starting this work early can help identify constraints and opportunities before the design is finalised. It can also highlight where further ecological information may be required to support your planning application.
The scope of an assessment will depend on the site, the proposed development and the requirements that apply to the application. A BNG Assessment is not a substitute for any separate protected species surveys or other ecological assessments that may be needed.Â
Where the statutory BNG requirements apply, a Biodiversity Gain Plan explains how the development will deliver the required biodiversity gain. It is a separate stage from the initial assessment and must be approved by the relevant planning authority before development begins.
A Biodiversity Gain Plan draws together the relevant information about the development, the biodiversity baseline and the proposed approach to delivering the required gain. This may involve habitat retention and enhancement on-site, habitat creation, registered off-site biodiversity units or, where appropriate and permitted, statutory biodiversity credits.
The plan should be based on a clear and workable strategy, supported by the relevant metric calculations and information about how the proposed habitat outcomes will be secured and managed.
ProHort can help you understand the information required for your Biodiversity Gain Plan and how it relates to your BNG Assessment, proposed layout and wider planning process.
Coventry’s green and blue infrastructure includes waterways, river corridors, green spaces and connected habitats that can be important to local nature recovery. The Coventry Canal and the River Sowe and River Sherbourne corridors are examples of features that may be relevant when considering habitat connectivity and opportunities for enhancement.
The relevance of these features depends on the location and characteristics of the development site. A site-specific assessment is needed to establish which habitats are actually present and how the proposed development may affect them.
Coventry includes a range of urban and previously developed sites. Land that appears heavily built-up or has a history of commercial or industrial use should not automatically be assumed to have no biodiversity value. Depending on how a site has developed, it may contain grassland, scrub, trees, planted areas or other habitats that need to be assessed.
Where appropriate, design options may include retaining existing habitats, creating new areas of suitable vegetation, incorporating wildlife-friendly landscaping or considering features such as green roofs and green walls. These measures do not automatically generate a particular number of biodiversity units; their contribution depends on the applicable metric rules, habitat specifications and site circumstances.Â
Some proposals may not be able to deliver all the required biodiversity gain within the development boundary. In these cases, suitable off-site provision may need to be considered, subject to the statutory framework and the planning authority’s requirements.
Coventry’s published guidance discusses local biodiversity offsetting opportunities and the importance of ensuring that proposed habitat measures are feasible, appropriate and capable of being secured for the long term. The availability and suitability of any particular off-site option should be checked for the individual project rather than assumed.
Share the site location, red-line boundary, development plans and any existing ecological information. These details help establish the likely scope of the assessment. Â
The existing habitats are assessed and their biodiversity value calculated using the applicable metric. The assessment should reflect the site and the proposed development, with appropriate ecological information to support the calculations.
The baseline is compared with the proposed habitat losses, retention, enhancement and creation. This helps identify opportunities to avoid impacts and determine what further measures may be needed.
Where statutory BNG applies, the strategy may combine suitable on-site measures with eligible off-site provision if necessary. The approach must follow the applicable rules and be supported by the relevant evidence.Â
After planning permission, the Biodiversity Gain Plan sets out how the applicable biodiversity gain requirement will be met. It must be approved by the relevant planning authority before development commences, where the statutory requirement applies.
Contact us, and we’ll confirm exactly what your Coventry site requires. We provide a planning-ready, proportionate route forward.Â
A BNG Assessment establishes the existing biodiversity value of a site and calculates how the proposed development may affect it. A Biodiversity Gain Plan explains how the applicable biodiversity gain requirement will be delivered. Where statutory BNG applies, the plan is a separate requirement that must be approved by the relevant planning authority before development begins.
Yes. Coventry City Council publishes a Biodiversity Net Gain Supplementary Planning Document that explains the council’s local approach to biodiversity impacts, habitat improvements and offsetting. Applicants should check the latest council guidance alongside current national requirements when preparing a planning application.Â
Yes. Previously developed or urban sites can contain habitats such as scrub, grassland, trees and other vegetation. Their biodiversity value depends on the habitats present and their condition, so a site’s former use or amount of hardstanding does not by itself establish its baseline value.
They may be relevant where a development site contains or affects associated habitats or ecological connections. The assessment must establish the habitats present within the site and consider relevant direct or indirect impacts. The presence of a nearby waterway does not automatically mean it can be counted towards a site’s biodiversity units.
Coventry’s published BNG guidance identifies on-site delivery as the preferred outcome where suitable. However, the appropriate strategy depends on the site, the proposed development and the applicable requirements. Where sufficient gain cannot be delivered on-site, suitable off-site options may need to be considered.
Potentially. Measures such as suitable green roofs, green walls and wildlife-friendly landscaping may provide biodiversity benefits, particularly where they are designed around appropriate habitat objectives. Whether they contribute to the statutory calculation, and by how much, depends on the applicable metric rules and the detail of the proposed habitat.
Where the statutory BNG requirement applies, the Biodiversity Gain Plan must be approved by the relevant planning authority before development begins. It is prepared following planning permission and should explain how the required biodiversity gain will be delivered. Exemptions and transitional provisions can affect whether the statutory requirement applies to a particular proposal.
Useful information includes the site address, red-line boundary or location plan, proposed development layout, any existing ecological reports and details of the planning application. If some information is not yet available, an initial discussion can help identify what is needed to establish the assessment scope.
