Google DeepMind has announced that PlanAssist, an artificial intelligence tool that assists UK planning officers, cut the time spent assessing householder planning applications by up to 58% in early pilot testing. The tool is now set to be made available to an additional 12 local planning authorities across England.

In early pilot testing across Barnet, Camden, and Dorset, PlanAssist reduced the average time a planning officer spent on householder assessment tasks by 58%. The tool is designed to support human judgment rather than replace it: it speeds up routine checks while ensuring planning officers retain the final say on every application.

The announcement, authored by Owen Larter and David Thacker and published on the Google DeepMind blog, forms part of Google DeepMind's broader partnership with the UK government to explore how AI can help transform planning and other public services. PlanAssist is built with Gemini, the company's AI model.

Planning bottlenecks carry real costs. For the economy, they slow progress toward the UK government's goal of building 1.5 million new homes by 2029. For families, they can mean months of waiting for approval on something as simple as a loft conversion, conservatory, or extension.

How PlanAssist supports officers

Routine householder applications — home-improvement proposals such as extensions, loft conversions, or conservatories — account for up to 70% of planning officers' workloads. They are often simple to approve but consume a disproportionate share of officers' time.

PlanAssist was developed by Google DeepMind in collaboration with the UK government, Google Cloud, and Faculty. The tool streamlines this work by giving planning officers automated support with processing applications and drafting assessment recommendations.

The tool first validates application documents and architectural drawings, checking that the required information has been submitted so the application can proceed. It then checks the application against heritage constraints, such as tree preservation orders, as well as local and national planning policies. It also checks whether any issues or objections have previously been raised, such as by local residents. Finally, it drafts fully cited reports that planning officers can edit before reaching a final decision.

Since June, the tool has been piloted across Barnet, Camden, and Dorset councils, with encouraging early results. In addition to more than halving the officer assessment time per application, more than 70% of the reports generated by the tool — covering matters such as whether an application complies with local planning rules, or whether the applicant has submitted all required documentation — were approved by officers with no edits required.

Moving from pilot to scale

PlanAssist is now moving into a 12-month Beta phase using live applications, starting with a subset of councils. Twelve more councils will be onboarded in three cohorts, bringing the total number of participating authorities to 15. Together, these councils span metropolitan and rural districts across the country, allowing PlanAssist's capabilities to be tested across a diverse range of communities.

Subject to successful testing, the government plans for the tool to be made available to all councils in England in 2027, with every assessment reviewed and approved by a qualified planning officer before any decision is made. That condition makes the Beta's live-application phase — and the results from its three onboarding cohorts — the milestones to watch ahead of any nationwide rollout.

AI in service of communities

Planning decisions shape everyday lives, from a family adding a nursery to a homeowner preparing for winter. By handling time-consuming administrative tasks while ensuring planning officers retain the final say on every decision, PlanAssist shows how AI can help cut backlogs and approve applications faster.

Google DeepMind said that providing access to the new councils is the natural next step, and that it looks forward to continuing to support the UK government as it works to build more homes and unlock economic growth across the country.

Source: Google DeepMind Blog