Legal

    Privacy Policy

    Last updated: 17th January, 2026

    At Plans4 (plans4.co.uk), we believe planning data should be open, transparent, and easy for communities to understand. We only collect and process data necessary to help residents stay informed and have a voice in local planning.

    Please note: The platform is provided as-is and may be discontinued at any time. We will provide reasonable notice if this occurs and ensure your data is handled appropriately.

    1. What Data We Collect

    Publicly available planning data

    We collect and process information already published by local councils under the Open Government Licence (OGL), including planning applications, meeting agendas, and related documents. This data is sourced from local borough councils. This may include names and addresses where they are part of official public registers. Original documents remain the copyright of the respective local authorities.

    User account data

    If you sign up, we collect your name, email address, postcode, location preferences, and notification preferences (e.g., what types of planning activity you want to be alerted to).

    Community input

    If you submit comments, objections, or contributions through the platform, we process that content to share with the community and, where appropriate, forward to local authorities.

    AI-generated data

    We create and store AI-generated analysis of planning documents, including summaries, sentiment analysis, approval likelihood estimates, and generated objection or support letters based on your inputs.

    Usage analytics

    We collect anonymous usage data to understand how the service is used and improve performance, including page views, feature usage, and error logs.

    Developer Showcase data

    If you are a property developer using our Developer Showcase service, we collect and process company information, contact details, showcase content, uploaded documents, and responses to community questions. We also collect analytics data on showcase performance including views, question submissions, and document downloads.

    2. Why We Process Data

    We process data to:

    • • Provide summaries and alerts of planning activity in your area.
    • • Help residents write informed, polite, and effective comments.
    • • Aggregate community sentiment (e.g., common concerns, levels of support).
    • • Improve transparency and trust in the planning process.
    • • Analyse planning documents using AI to make information more accessible.

    Legal basis for processing

    Legitimate Interest: We have conducted a Legitimate Interest Assessment (LIA) and determined that processing publicly available planning data to help communities engage with local planning serves a legitimate interest that does not override your rights. This includes AI analysis of public documents.

    Consent: Where we process your personal account information and preferences, we rely on your explicit consent provided during registration. You can withdraw consent at any time by deleting your account.

    Contractual Necessity: Some data processing is necessary to provide the service you've requested (e.g., storing your preferences to send relevant alerts).

    3. AI and Automated Processing

    The platform uses artificial intelligence to analyse planning documents and assist users. This involves automated processing of publicly available data and user inputs.

    What our AI does

    • • Document Analysis: Extracts key information from planning PDFs (application type, property count, key details).
    • • Sentiment Analysis: Analyses planning documents to identify concerns, benefits, and overall sentiment.
    • • Approval Likelihood: Estimates probability of approval based on document analysis and policy context.
    • • Letter Generation: Creates draft objection or support letters based on your stated concerns/benefits and relevant planning policies.
    • • Summary Generation: Produces plain-English summaries of complex planning documents.

    How AI processing works

    AI analysis uses natural language processing to extract information, identify patterns, and generate content. The logic includes keyword matching, policy cross-referencing, and probability scoring based on document content. AI outputs are generated automatically and are not reviewed by humans before being displayed to users.

    Important limitations

    AI-generated content may contain errors. It is provided for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as professional advice. Always verify important information against original planning documents. Approval likelihood estimates are indicative only and do not guarantee outcomes.

    Your rights regarding automated decisions

    Under UK GDPR Article 22, you have the right to object to decisions based solely on automated processing that have legal or similarly significant effects. While our AI analysis is informational and advisory, if you believe an automated decision has affected you, you have the right to request human review. Contact us at info@plans4.co.uk.

    4. How We Protect Your Data

    • • We minimise personal data stored (only what's necessary).
    • • We redact personal details from planning documents where they are not essential for community understanding.
    • • All data is stored securely with encryption at rest and in transit.
    • • We never sell or share your personal data with third parties for marketing.
    • • We work with trusted third-party processors who have appropriate data protection measures in place (see Section 6).
    • • Access to personal data is restricted to authorised personnel only.

    In the event of a data breach affecting your personal data, we will notify you and the ICO within 72 hours as required by UK GDPR.

    5. Sharing Data

    With Councils

    Where appropriate and with your explicit consent, user-submitted objections or comments may be forwarded to the relevant local authority as part of the formal consultation process.

    With Communities

    Aggregated insights (e.g., "80% of residents objected to this application because of traffic concerns") may be shared publicly, but without exposing unnecessary personal data. Individual comments are anonymised unless you choose to make them public.

    Developer Showcase content

    Developer Showcase content, including company information, proposal details, uploaded documents, and Q&A responses, is shared publicly with the community. Developers consent to this public sharing as part of the showcase service. Community questions submitted through showcases are moderated before being shared with developers.

    Third-party service providers

    We share data with trusted processors who help us deliver the service (see Section 6 below). These processors are contractually bound to protect your data and use it only for specified purposes.

    6. Third-Party Services

    The platform uses the following third-party services, each with appropriate data protection measures:

    • • Supabase (USA): Database hosting and authentication services. Data is stored on secure servers with encryption. Supabase is SOC 2 Type II compliant.
    • • Mapbox/Leaflet: Map display services for showing planning application locations. Location data is processed to render maps.
    • • Email Service Providers: For sending notification emails and digests. We share only necessary contact information.
    • • AI Processing Services: For document analysis and content generation. Planning documents and user inputs are processed by AI models. We use reputable providers with data protection safeguards.
    • • Analytics Tools: Anonymous usage analytics to improve the service. No personally identifiable information is shared.
    • • Stripe: Payment processing for Developer Showcase subscriptions. Stripe processes payment card details directly; we do not store card numbers on our servers.

    International data transfers

    Some of our service providers (e.g., Supabase) are based outside the UK. Where data is transferred internationally, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place, including Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) approved by the ICO and adequacy decisions where applicable.

    7. Your Rights

    Under UK GDPR, you have the following rights:

    • • Right of Access: Request a copy of all personal data we hold about you.
    • • Right to Rectification: Correct inaccurate or incomplete personal data.
    • • Right to Erasure: Request deletion of your personal data (subject to legal obligations).
    • • Right to Restrict Processing: Limit how we use your data in certain circumstances.
    • • Right to Data Portability: Receive your data in a structured, machine-readable format.
    • • Right to Object: Object to processing based on legitimate interests, including AI analysis.
    • • Right to Withdraw Consent: Where processing is based on consent, you can withdraw it at any time.
    • • Right to Object to Automated Decision-Making: Challenge decisions made solely by automated means.

    How to exercise your rights

    To exercise any of these rights, contact us at info@plans4.co.uk with the subject line "Data Rights Request". We will respond within one month of receipt. If your request is complex, we may extend this by up to two months and will inform you.

    Right to complain

    If you are unhappy with how we handle your data, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO):

    ICO Website: ico.org.uk
    ICO Helpline: 0303 123 1113
    Address: Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF

    8. Data Retention

    • • User accounts: Retained until you delete your account. You can delete your account at any time from your profile settings.
    • • Community comments and contributions: Retained while relevant to the planning process, then archived or anonymised after the planning decision is made.
    • • Planning data: Updated and refreshed as councils publish new information. Historical records may be retained for transparency and research purposes.
    • • AI-generated analysis: Retained alongside planning applications for consistency and audit purposes. Regenerated when source documents are updated.
    • • Usage analytics: Anonymous analytics retained for up to 2 years to identify trends and improve the service.
    • • Developer Showcase data: Showcase content and analytics are retained while the showcase is active and for 12 months after archival for record-keeping purposes. Payment records are retained as required by UK tax law.

    Service discontinuation

    If the service is discontinued, we will provide at least 30 days' notice. During this period, you will have the opportunity to download your data. After the service closes, personal data will be securely deleted within 90 days, except where retention is required by law.

    9. Cookies & Analytics

    We use cookies and similar technologies to:

    • • Essential cookies: Remember your login status and preferences (necessary for service operation).
    • • Analytics cookies: Understand how the platform is used through anonymous analytics (no personal identification).
    • • Functional cookies: Remember your map preferences and display settings to improve your experience.

    You can control cookie preferences through your browser settings. Disabling essential cookies may affect service functionality. For more information, see our Cookie Policy.

    10. Data Controller Information

    The data controller for this platform is:

    Plans4
    Surrey, United Kingdom
    Email: info@plans4.co.uk

    Data Protection Lead: info@plans4.co.uk

    11. Changes to This Privacy Policy

    We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal requirements, or other factors. When we make significant changes, we will notify you by:

    • Displaying a prominent notice on the website
    • Sending an email to registered users (where appropriate)
    • Updating the "Last updated" date at the top of this policy

    Continued use of the platform after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the updated policy. If you do not agree with the changes, please stop using the service and contact us to delete your account.

    12. Contact Us

    For questions about this Privacy Policy, data protection matters, or to exercise your rights, contact:

    Data Protection Lead
    Plans4
    Email: info@plans4.co.uk

    For copyright or attribution enquiries regarding planning data sources, use the same email with the subject line "Copyright Enquiry".

    We aim to respond to all enquiries within 5 working days.