Daylight requirements in Falkirk are shaped by the council's adopted Local Development Plan 2 (LDP2) and by national policy. Whether you are extending a house in Falkirk, Grangemouth or Larbert, or bringing forward a new housing site near Bo'ness or Denny, the effect of your proposal on daylight, sunlight and privacy will be a material consideration. This guide sets out how Falkirk Council assesses those issues and how a BRE-based daylight and sunlight report fits in.
The planning framework in Falkirk
Development in the Falkirk Council area is determined against a statutory development plan with two main parts:
- Falkirk Local Development Plan 2 (LDP2) — adopted on 7 August 2020. It guides development across the council area and provides the criteria used to assess planning applications, supported by a suite of adopted Supplementary Guidance documents.
- National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) — adopted by the Scottish Government in February 2023 and forming part of the statutory development plan. Its Policy 14 (Design, quality and place) requires development to respect the “six qualities of successful places” and not to unacceptably undermine the amenity of existing homes, while Policy 16 (Quality homes) seeks well-designed, good-quality housing — which includes adequate daylight for new dwellings.
How LDP2 protects daylight and amenity
At the heart of LDP2 is the keynote design policy, Policy PE01 Placemaking, which sets out the placemaking principles that all new development is expected to follow. Beyond that, several housing policies in LDP2 deal directly with daylight, sunlight and privacy, and these are the ones most often cited in decisions:
Policy HC04 — Housing Density and Site Capacity
When determining the appropriate density and capacity of a housing site, LDP2 requires prior consideration of, among other things, “residential amenity, with particular regard to privacy, daylighting and suitable provision of private garden ground.” In other words, on larger sites daylight and amenity are designed in from the layout stage, not assessed as an afterthought.
Policy HC06 — Infill Development and Plot Sub-Division
Proposals to build additional houses within the curtilage of an existing property or on small gap sites will only be permitted where, among other criteria, “adequate privacy and daylighting will be afforded to both the proposed house(s) and neighbouring properties.” Falkirk has a good deal of this kind of plot sub-division pressure, so this is a frequently engaged test.
Policy HC08 — Residential Extensions and Alterations
For householder work, LDP2 permits extensions and alterations where, among other things, “the location and scale of the extension or alterations will not significantly affect the degree of amenity, daylight or privacy enjoyed by neighbouring properties.” Detailed guidance on applying this policy is set out in Supplementary Guidance SG03 ‘Residential Extensions and Alterations’.
For new neighbourhoods and larger schemes, Supplementary Guidance SG02 ‘Neighbourhood Design’ expands on the placemaking principles in Policy PE01, addressing the relationship between buildings, privacy and amenity. Together, PE01, HC04, HC06 and HC08 mean that daylight and privacy are tested across the full range of development types in Falkirk — from a single rear extension to a strategic housing allocation.
A recurring theme across LDP2's housing policies is “privacy, daylighting and suitable provision of private garden ground”. A well-prepared daylight and sunlight report should address all three, not daylight alone.
Local context that affects daylight assessment
Two practical points are worth keeping in mind in the Falkirk area:
- A mix of settlement patterns. The council area spans the dense town centres of Falkirk and Grangemouth, the riverside terraces of Bo'ness, and lower-density villages such as Denny, Banknock and Bonnybridge. The daylight relationships between buildings vary a great deal between these contexts, so an assessment that reflects the specific street and plot pattern carries far more weight than a generic one.
- Substantial planned housing growth. LDP2 carries a housing supply target of 6,894 homes for the period 2017–2030, much of it on allocated and windfall sites within the urban area. On these sites, the council's expectation under Policy HC04 is that layout, density and capacity are justified with explicit regard to daylight, privacy and private garden ground.
BRE BR 209 and BS EN 17037
LDP2 sets the policy expectation that daylight and privacy will be protected, but it does not itself prescribe the calculation method. That is where the established technical standards come in. The recognised UK reference is the Building Research Establishment guide BRE BR 209, Site Layout Planning for Daylight and Sunlight (2022 edition), which defines the Vertical Sky Component (VSC), the No Sky Line / daylight distribution within rooms, and the Annual Probable Sunlight Hours (APSH) used to test sunlight. Alongside it, BS EN 17037 (Daylight in Buildings) sets best-practice targets for daylight provision inside new homes.
Applied together, BR 209 (2022) and BS EN 17037 provide an objective, defensible way to demonstrate that a Falkirk proposal satisfies the daylight and amenity expectations of Policies PE01, HC04, HC06 and HC08, and the wider amenity tests in NPF4.
Practical tips for applicants in Falkirk
- Identify the LDP2 policy that applies to your proposal — HC06 for plot sub-division, HC08 for extensions, HC04 for new housing layouts — and frame the assessment around it.
- Address privacy, daylight and garden ground together; LDP2 treats them as a package.
- For householder work, check Supplementary Guidance SG03 before finalising the design.
- Commission the daylight and sunlight report early, while massing and layout can still be adjusted.
How Fortress Associates can help
Fortress Associates provides our daylight and sunlight report service to BRE BR 209 (2022) and BS EN 17037, prepared to align with Falkirk Council's adopted LDP2 policies and supplementary guidance. We can also prepare building warrant drawings to the Building (Scotland) Regulations where needed. We work UK-wide with a 4–5 working day turnaround and ask for no advance payment. To discuss a Falkirk project, please get in touch.
Sources & further reading
- Falkirk Council — Local Development Plan 2 (LDP2)
- Falkirk Council — LDP2 Supplementary Guidance (including SG02 and SG03)
- Scottish Government — National Planning Framework 4
- BRE — BR 209: Site Layout Planning for Daylight and Sunlight (2022)
- Fortress Associates — our services
- Daylight Requirements in City of Edinburgh (sibling guide)
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