Glossary

Glossary oulining terms used through this website
Term	Description
ACTIVE FRONTAGE	Ground floor building frontage designed to allow visual contact and pedestrian movement between inside and out.
AFFORDABLE HOUSING	Housing that is for sale or rent, to meet the identified needs of people who cannot afford to buy or rent housing generally available on the open market.
AREA OF GREAT LANDSCAPE VALUE (AGLV)	An area designated by a local authority in development plans as being of special landscape character requiring special protection against inappropriate forms of development. The requirement to designate AGLVs is set out in Circular 2/1962.
BEST PRACTICABLE ENVIRONMENTAL OPTION	Best Practicable Environmental Option (BPEO) the outcome of a systematic consultative and decision making procedure which emphasises the protection and conservation of the environment across land, air and water. The BPEO procedure establishes for a given set of objectives, the option that provides the most benefit or least damage to the environment as a whole, at acceptable cost, in the long term as well as in the short term'. (Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution.)
BIODIVERSITY	The variety of life on earth, both plant and animal species, commonplace and rare, and the habitats in which they are found.
BIODIVERSITY ACTION PLAN	The Edinburgh Biodiversity Action Plan 2001-2009 places an emphasis on raising awareness of biodiversity by encouraging local communities to consider what is important to them in their area while seeking to conserve and enhance wild species and wildlife habitats.
BROWNFIELD LAND	Land which has been previously developed. The term may encompass vacant or derelict land; infill sites; land occupied by redundant or unused buildings; and developed land within the urban area where intensification of use is considered acceptable. Source: SPP 3 Planning for Housing.
BULKY GOODS	Goods of such a size that they could not normally be transported by customers traveling by foot, cycle or bus and therefore need to be carried away by car or delivered to customers, and which require large areas to display them.
BUSINESS USE	Class 4 of the Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) (Scotland) Order 1997 which includes general office, light industry or research and development which can be carried out without detriment to the amenity of any residential area.
COMMERCIAL CENTRES	Centres of strategic importance which have a more specific focus on shopping or shopping/leisure uses and do not have the diverse mix of uses found in town centres. The Structure Plan 2015 identifies 8 major shopping centres of strategic importance. This Plan uses the term 'Commercial Centres' consistent with SPP8: Town Centres and Retailing (see Table 8.1).
CONSERVATION AREA	An area designated under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997 as being of special architectural or historic interest, the character and interest of which it is desirable to preserve or enhance.
CORE PATHS AND CORE PATH NETWORKS	The Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 requires local authorities to prepare a plan for a system of ‘core paths’ to give people reasonable access throughout their area for walking, cycling, horse riding and to inland water.
COUNTRYSIDE RECREATION	Passive or active outdoor recreational pursuits or land uses. This may involve very limited buildings, which do not, of themselves, disrupt the peace and tranquility of the countryside (or neighbouring urban area) or threaten the character and amenity of the landscape and its enjoyment by others.
DENSITY	The floorspace or number of dwellings in a development divided by its land area.
DEVELOPMENT BRIEF	A document approved by the Council providing guidance on how a specific site of significant size or sensitivity should be developed in line with the relevant planning and design policies. It will usually contain some indicative vision of future development form.
EMPLOYMENT USE	Generally businesses, general industry or storage and distribution uses, each defined in the Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) (Scotland) Order 1997.
EUROPEAN SITE	See Natura 2000 description.
FAMILY HOUSING	Houses or flats with three or more bedrooms, private open space, convenient access to play areas, and sufficient internal floorspace, including storage space, to accommodate the general requirements for family living.
GREEN BELT	Land defined in adopted local plans where planning controls aim to maintain a rural character and therefore where there is a general presumption against development except in very special circumstances.
GREENFIELD SITES	Land which has not previously been developed, or fully-restored formerly derelict land which has been brought back into active or beneficial use for agriculture, forestry, environmental purposes, or outdoor recreation. Source: SPP 3: Planning for Housing.
HOME ZONE	Residential areas where street space is shared between pedestrians, cyclists and motorists. The aim is that the traditional distinction between the carriageway and the footways is removed and that the street as a whole becomes an extension of the local community’s living space. Source: Home Zones Guidance Consultation, Scottish Executive, 2002.
HOUSING IN MULTIPLE OCCUPATION (HMO)	The term ‘house in multiple occupancy’ in relation to houses, means accommodation which is the only or principal residence of more than five unrelated people. This approach also applies, in general, to flatted accommodation, although in smaller properties, proposals involving more than four unrelated people living together may be considered to constitute a HMO.
IMMEDIATE OUTLOOK	The foreground of what can be seen from within a building. Does not include medium or long views from properties.
INFRASTRUCTURE	The public transport facilities, roads, sewers, water mains, schools, gas and electricity, supply networks, etc, which are needed to allow developments to take place.
KNOWLEDGE-INTENSIVE BUSINESSES	Businesses where most of the work is said to be of an intellectual nature and where highly educated and qualified people form a major part of the workforce. Typically these businesses include Information Communication Technology, Research and Development and high tech companies.
LIFETIME HOMES	Designed to be adaptable to meet a household’s changing needs, and to be accessible and safe for people to live in at all stages of their life.
LISTED BUILDING	A building identified by Historic Scotland as being of special architectural or historical interest as set out in the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997. Categorised A, B, C(s) to reflect their relative importance.
LOCAL NATURE RESERVES	Area of nature conservation interest with value for education and informal enjoyment designated by a local authority under the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act (1949) as amended.
LOCAL NATURE CONSERVATION SITES	Sites considered by the Council to be of local importance for wildlife or for their geological or geomorphological interest, usually following consultation with local voluntary nature conservation organisations, and therefore worthy of a measure of protection in this local plan.
LOCAL CENTRE	For the purposes of this Plan a local centre has been taken to be a shopping centre, usually of 10 units or greater, serving a local retail function. The local centres are listed in Table 8.1. In some instances centres of less than 10 units have been included in order to provide a local centre within 15 minutes walk of residents where possible.
LOCAL TRANSPORT STRATEGY LOW AND ZERO CARBON EQUIPMENT	Document prepared by a Council setting out its transport strategy and an implementation programme. Equipment provided on-site or integrated into buildings and which use solely renewable sources, resulting in zero carbon dioxide emissions, or which include use of fossil fuels but with significantly lower carbon dioxide emissions overall, which may include combined heat and power (CHP) and/or a range of other methods, including those referred to in PAN 84.
MAJOR OFFICE DEVELOPMENT	Proposals for office development exceeding 1,000 m² gross floorspace, and those proposals of less than 1,000 m² , which could be linked to existing or proposed developments on adjacent sites, thereby creating combined developments which in total exceed 1,000 m² .
MASTER PLAN	A detailed document that explains how a site or sites will be developed, usually prepared by or on behalf of the landowner, including a representation of the three-dimensional form of proposals and an implementation programme.
MATERIAL CONSIDERATION	Any consideration relevant to the use and development of land taken into account when determining a planning application.
NATURA 2000	Sites selected by the European Commission for designation as Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) under the Habitats Directive or classified as Special Protection Areas (SPAs) under the Wild Birds Directive are referred to collectively in the Regulations as European sites. The network of sites across the European Community is known as Natura 2000.
NON-SHOP USES	Defined as uses not covered by Class 1 of the Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) (Scotland) Order 1997.
OPEN SPACE	Includes ‘greenspace’ consisting of any vegetated land or structure, water or geological feature in an urban area, including trees, woodlands and paths and ‘civic space’ consisting of squares, market places and other paved or hard landscaped areas with a civic function. Source: SPP 11: Open Space and Physical Activity.
PLANNING ADVICE NOTES (PAN)	A series of documents produced by the Scottish Executive providing advice on good planning practice and other relevant information.
PLANNING CONDITIONS	Conditions attached to a planning consent that are enforced through planning legislation.
PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP (PPP)	Joint working/funding arrangement involving public and private bodies.
PUBLIC REALM	The parts of the city (whether publicly or privately owned) that are available for everyone to see and use without charge 24 hours a day, including streets, squares and parks.
PUBLIC TRANSPORT NODE	A point of interchange on the public transport network.
RETAIL PARK	A single development of at least three retail warehouses with associated car parking. Source: SPP 8: Town Centres and Retailing.
RETAIL WAREHOUSE	A store built as a single storey, but may contain whole or partial mezzanine space, specialising in the sale of household goods such as carpets, furniture and electrical goods, and bulky DIY items, with immediate access to car parking.
SCHEDULED ANCIENT MONUMENTS	Section 1 of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act, 1979 (pdf,4.5MB) requires the Secretary of State for Scotland to maintain a schedule of monuments of national importance and to publish from time to time a list of such monuments (referred to as Scheduled Monuments). This responsibility passed to Scottish Ministers on 1 July 1999.
SCOTTISH PLANNING POLICIES (SPPs)	Documents produced by the Scottish Executive Development Department that provide statements of Government policy on nationally important land use and other planning matters, supported where appropriate by a locational framework. These should be taken into account by local planning authorities in the preparation of development plans and development control. SPPs will eventually supersede NPPGs.
SHOP UNIT	Premises at ground or basement level opening directly onto the street and designed primarily for shop use.
SITE OF SPECIAL SCIENTIFIC INTEREST (SSSI)	Areas of land or water that are of special interest by reason of their flora, fauna or geological or physiographical features. Designated by SNH under the provisions of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and in accordance with specific guidelines to protect the special interest of the site from damage or deterioration.
SOUTH-EAST WEDGE	The South-East Wedge refers to the area to the south of the existing built-up areas of Craigmillar and Niddrie, east of Little France, and north and east of Danderhall. It includes parts of the City of Edinburgh and Midlothian Council areas.
SPECIAL PROTECTION AREA (SPA)	An area of international importance for rare, threatened or migratory species of birds. Proposed developments must be considered against the risk to the ecological integrity of the site under the terms of EU Directive 79/409/EEC on the Conservation of Wild Birds (commonly known as the Birds Directive).
STRUCTURE PLAN	That part of the development plan concerned with strategic policies/proposals.
SUPPLEMENTARY PLANNING GUIDANCE	Guidance on planning matters which supplement the development plan which may be a material consideration for planning purposes, and may relate to a site, or a topic. Urban design frameworks and development briefs are forms of supplementary planning guidance.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT	Development which aims to minimise the impact of human activity on the environment as a whole, whilst supporting economic and social progress.
SUSTAINABLE URBAN DRAINAGE	A comprehensive approach to surface water management which aims through a combination of design measures to minimise the quantity and improve the quality of water before it is discharged from a development site so as to help prevent flooding and pollution.
TOWN CENTRE	Centres that provide a diverse and sustainable mix of activities and land uses which create an identity that signals their function and wider role. The Structure Plan 2015 identifies Edinburgh City Centre and nine other centres in this local plan area as town centres (see Table 8.1). Source: SPP 8: Town Centres and Retailing.
TOWNSCAPE	The urban equivalent of landscape; for example, the appearance of streets.
TRADE RETAIL	A unit with the primary use of class 6 storage and distribution, in terms of the Use Classes (Scotland) Order 1997, where only a small proportion of the gross floor area within the unit is accessible to trade customers or members of the public for the sale of non-food goods, usually those used by building and trade businesses (e.g. tiles or bathroom furnishings).
TRAM	A form of urban rail using both segregated and on street alignments (also known as ‘Light Rail’).
TRANSPORT ASSESSMENT	Transport Assessment concerns person trips, not car trips. It is a comprehensive assessment that should enable all the potential transport impacts of a proposed development or redevelopment to be fully understood. The objective should be to encourage sustainable travel in relation to the transport mode hierarchy. The assessment should be presented in clear language so that lay people can understand the implications. Source: PAN 75: Planning for Transport.
TRAVEL PLAN	Tool for an organisation to manage its transport needs to minimise environmental impact, maximise efficiency and benefit employee health. It is site based, reflecting the different needs and problems of different locations. The principal objective of a plan is typically to minimise car use associated with a development.
TREE PRESERVATION ORDER (TPO)	Made by a local authority under the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 to protect trees of importance for amenity.
UNSCHEDULED ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE	An unscheduled archaeological site, building or feature of local and/or regional importance included on the Sites and Monuments Record maintained by each local authority.
URBAN DESIGN FRAMEWORK	Urban design frameworks show how planning and design policies should be implemented, and what principles should be followed by developers and their designers. They may be used to co-ordinate more detailed master plans and are likely to be prepared for any area where the likelihood of significant change calls for co-ordinated action.
VITALITY AND VIABILITY (OF TOWN CENTRES)	Vitality is a measure of how lively and busy a town centre is. Viability is a measure of its capacity to attract ongoing investment, for maintenance, improvement and adaptation to changing needs. Source: SPP 8: Town Centres and Retailing.
WASTE/WASTE MANAGEMENT	Includes any substance that constitutes a scrap material or an effluent or other unwanted surplus substance arising from the application of any process; and any substance or article that requires to be disposed of as being broken, worn out, contaminated or otherwise spoiled (but does not include explosives).
WORLD HERITAGE SITE	A cultural or natural site considered by UNESCO World Heritage Committee to be of ‘outstanding universal value’ and therefore one that needs to be preserved as part of the world heritage of humankind. The historic core of Edinburgh, essentially the Old and New Town was inscribed in 1995.