Design Review Service

The national Design Review Service from the Design Commission for Wales gives you the opportunity to have your development plans and proposals considered by our independent panel of experts; the earlier the better.

Early consultation is recommended by DCFW, in national planning policy and in associated practice guides, particularly as our comments represent material considerations in the determination of planning applications. Our comment is recognised as authoritative by the Planning Inspectorate of England and Wales and our reports can be used in public enquiries and planning appeals.

Our unique service is available for clients, developers, designers, planning authorities, stakeholders and other public bodies, community groups or members of the public wanting an independent expert view. We can help to identify early opportunities for good design quality in development proposals in the planning system and assist local authorities to secure public value through design excellence.

We can help with small projects as well as larger ones in the short or longer term. We can help you use the Well-being of Future Generations Act to inform and shape your project objectives. We have specialist energy and transport infrastructure expertise as well as urban design, planning and architecture. We can often work with you strategically over the long term responding to the specific needs of your proposal.

You can download our guide to our Design Review Service here and our Design Review Essentials here, call us on 029 2045 1964 or you can email connect@dcfw.org to find out more.