WYG is particularly well placed to provide Sustainability Appraisal services.  Our skills range from the collation of baseline data through to the social / economic / environmental assessment of strategic options and monitoring work.  WYG has considerable experience and a strong track record in managing and undertaking Sustainability Appraisals demonstrating our ability to deal with complex environmental issues at the strategic scale.  Our in-house Geographical Information System (GIS) capabilities allow for the easy transposition and presentation of data.

Sustainability Appraisal is a process through which the sustainability of a plan under preparation is assessed. It addresses social and economic issues but also takes into consideration environmental issues.

The Planning and Compulsory Act (2004) requires Local Authorities to carry out a Sustainability Appraisal of their Local Development Framework process.  Other plans may also be informally subject to Sustainability Appraisal.

Sustainability Appraisal addresses social and economic issues but also takes into consideration environmental issues.  Undertaking Sustainability Appraisal allows for the social / economic / environmental acceptability of strategic options to be determined and thus taken into account in the decision making process.

Sustainability Appraisal at plan level is described by the ODPM (2004) guidance as:

“an iterative process that identifies and reports on the likely significant effects of the plan and the extent to which implementation of the plan will achieve the social, environmental and economic objectives by which sustainable development can be defined.”

Consultation at the start of and throughout the Sustainability Appraisal process will provide a means of reaching a consensus among stakeholders regarding the criteria by which the sustainability of the plan will be assessed.