Alongside PlanAssist
ValidFirst and PlanAssist
Side by side
What each one does
| PlanAssist (published) | ValidFirst | |
|---|---|---|
| Who uses it | Planning officers, after an application is submitted | Applicants and agents before they submit, and validation officers when the application arrives |
| Stage | Assessment: policy, constraints, objections and a draft officer report | Validation: are the required documents there, and do they show what the requirements ask for |
| Application types | Householder applications | 8 types, including householder, full, lawful development certificates, prior approval, listed building consent, works to trees and advertisement consent |
| Where | England; 3 pilot councils, then a 12-month beta with 12 more from 30 October 2026; government intends to make it available to every council in England by the end of 2027 | England; a page for each of the 308 planning authorities today, on the national requirements; a council's local list is added when it joins |
| Built by | Google DeepMind, Google Cloud and Faculty for MHCLG and DSIT, through i.AI; an £8.2m contract | ValidFirst, an independent supplier; not part of government |
| Model | Gemini, on Google Cloud | Claude through Amazon Bedrock in Europe; a European provider as an option per council |
| Published results | Vendor figures: up to 58% less officer time on householder assessment; over 70% of draft reports approved unedited | None yet: no UK council is live. Each council's pilot measures first-time valid rate, validation time and officer agreement against its own baseline |
| Transparency documents | No ATRS record or DPIA found (searched 14 November 2026) | Draft DPIA, data processing terms, ATRS record and security statement, available on request |
| Back office and Planning Portal | No published integration found (searched 14 November 2026) | Check code and report attached to the Planning Portal submission; export of a check report plus all files for any back office |
What PlanAssist is
A tool for officers assessing householder applications
PlanAssist was announced in June 2026 as the “Augmented Planning Decisions prototype” and named on 30 October 2026.1,2,3,4 It is built by Google DeepMind, Google Cloud and Faculty (the delivery partner) for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, through i.AI, on an £8.2m contract.1,2,3,4
It is for planning officers only, for householder applications only, in England only. It puts the application, local policy and site constraints on one screen, checks that the required documents are present, checks the proposal against constraints such as heritage designations and tree preservation orders and against policy with citations, summarises objections, and drafts a cited officer report with conditions for the officer to edit. It is built with Gemini on Google Cloud.1,2,3,4
Results published so far are figures from the government and its partners, not an independent evaluation: up to 58% less officer time on householder assessment, and more than 70% of draft reports approved without edits. We have not found published error rates.1,2,3,4
Timeline
- June 2026 · announced as a prototype
- Pilots · Barnet, Camden, Dorset
- 30 October 2026 · named PlanAssist; 12-month beta with 12 more councils: Ashford, Lambeth, Newcastle, Nottingham, Bristol, Cumberland, North Lincolnshire, Rochdale, Redbridge, South Gloucestershire, Stoke-on-Trent, Westminster
- By end of 2027 · government intends to make it available to every council in England
Not found in published material
An ATRS record, a DPIA, integration with Idox, Agile, Northgate or the Planning Portal, screenshots of the officer screen, and pricing. Searched 14 November 2026; we will update this page if they appear.
Where ValidFirst differs
Earlier in the process, and wider
Before submission
Applicants and agents check their documents before they send them, so fewer invalid applications reach the council at all.
More application types
8 types beyond householder, including prior approval, listed building consent, works to trees and advertisement consent.
Every council, now
All 308 English planning authorities have a page on the national requirements today. A council adds its local list and goes live within a week.
Measured per council
Every finding is set against the officer's decision, so each council sees how often the check agreed with its own team.
Together
How the two can work side by side
- ValidFirst before submission: applicants and agents fix missing or incomplete documents before they send them
- ValidFirst at validation: officers see the findings, constraints and a draft invalid-application letter, for every application type
- PlanAssist at assessment: for householder applications that are valid, the officer assesses with PlanAssist’s summary and draft report
- The council’s back office stays the system of record for both
ValidFirst has no connection with PlanAssist and is not endorsed by its owners.
Sources
PlanAssist facts on this page come only from these publications. The two commentary pieces are listed for further reading; nothing on this page relies on them alone.
- GOV.UK: Faster planning decisions as new rules and AI tackle delays
- GOV.UK: AI tool to slash planning decision times as government accelerates push to build 1.5 million homes
- Google DeepMind: Unlocking UK house building with AI-accelerated planning
- Google DeepMind: Speeding up planning decisions with AI
- Planning Geek (commentary): PlanAssist council trials
- Resultsense (commentary): PlanAssist AI planning: 15 councils
Spotted something out of date? Email hello@validfirst.co.uk and we will correct it.