The government’s AI-enabled digital planning tool that can extract structured data from poor scans, pdfs and paper documents is now available to all local planning authorities.

• Conservation Areas;
• Article 4 Directions; and
• Tree Preservation Orders.

Users upload scans or photographs of the original document, and Extract captures text, dates and geospatial data from the documents. It generates a digital record in two minutes on average. Users can review and edit the AI outputs before exporting their finished records.

Speeding up planners’ work

Extract was tested by 30 local planning authorities and analysed more than 400 digital planning records. It is estimated that it can reduce the total time local authorities spend creating digital records by around a half.

The government’s Incubator for Artificial Intelligence (i.AI) developed Extract and ran the tests. It states that user review and correction is essential to produce good-quality records. i.AI expects that Extract’s outputs will require only minor edits in two-thirds (59-72%) of cases.

Andrew Powell, local plan co-ordinator from Stoke-on-Trent City Council, was involved in Extract’s development. He shared his experience: “The data we asked it to extract was 100% accurate, and although it was a small sample, it gave us great confidence in the tool.

“We would strongly recommend other authorities to give it a go – it’s simple to use, does exactly what it promises, and has the potential to save significant resources. It’s fantastic that it has now launched across England, and I would encourage everyone to try the software.”

There are now 50 LPAs actively using the tool. Extract has already processed more than 1,000 documents, mostly Tree Preservation Orders.

Rachel Fisher, chief executive of the Royal Town Planning Institute, said: “While some of the UK’s planning departments are ahead of the digital curve, not everyone is applying the most up-to-date technology. Extract will therefore be a refreshing update to a local planning authority’s toolbox, which can sometimes feel out of date and unfit for purpose in today’s digital landscape. 

“With the ability to draw on robust datasets, this new tool could help planners make better-informed decisions. While a planner’s work should never be fully autonomous, tools that help alleviate pressure from hard-working local authorities while helping planners deliver better outcomes for their communities are always welcome.”

Further benefits

The government expects to see further benefits from the use of Extract including:

• reliable, standardised, machine-readable data as the foundation for the next generation of AI tools and planning software needed to deliver 1.5 million homes;
• planning services’ users can identify the right locations earlier – thanks to more open planning data – making applications more accurate and less likely to face delays; and
• provision of the consistent, accessible data to power modern digital planning tools like PlanX, BOPS and the Digital Site Register, giving applicants automated guidance and helping officers make faster decisions.

The government also expects Extract to help enable a prototype being built in collaboration with Google DeepMind and Faculty, and now being tested with Barnet, Camden and Dorset councils. The prototype aims to halve the time it takes to process householder planning applications.