State Planning Policy 4.2 - Activity centres

Policy
The activity centres policy is a state planning policy for the planning and development of activity centres throughout Western Australia.
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Activity centres are a significant focus for economic development and future growth. They are thriving community hubs that provide a diverse range of homes, jobs close to where people live, retail and commercial opportunities and other activities easily accessible by walking, cycling and public transport. 

The main purpose of this policy is to ensure planning, development and decision making adequately consider the distribution, function, broad land use, access and urban form considerations for activity centres in Perth, Peel and Bunbury.

Other purposes of the policy include:

  • ensuring a diversity of employment opportunities and the promotion of business clustering
  • providing for a choice of housing within and adjacent activity centres
  • designing activity centres to be more walkable and better integrated with public transport

The Western Australian Planning Commission engaged extensively with various key stakeholders to review State Planning Policy 4.2 Activity Centres for Perth and Peel and the Activity Centres for Greater Bunbury policy. 

Please note

State Planning Policy 4.2 Activity Centres will be gazetted on 3rd July 2023 and will be operational from that date, along with the Implementation Guidelines.

SPP 4.2 and METRONET

State Planning Policy 4.2 (SPP 4.2) encourages development and employment growth to be focused within and around activity centres with train stations, capitalising on the use of existing and planned infrastructure. 

It also aims to maximise access to and within activity centres by walking, cycling and public transport, reducing private vehicle trips and parking. 

SPP 4.2 and planning reform and Design WA

SPP 4.2 has been updated to align with planning reform by ensuring ‘land use and infrastructure planning is coordinated’, and providing an updated and expanded activity centre function and hierarchy (i.e. the inclusion of the Greater Bunbury Region Scheme). 

The review of SPP 4.2 also supports the delivery of good design and encouraging design excellence, consistent with the Design WA suite of policies.

Frequently asked questions

What are Activity Centres?

Activity centres are mixed use urban areas where there is a concentration of commercial, residential and other land uses. They are multi-functional community focal points where people live, work, shop, meet and relax. They vary in size and function and are generally well-serviced by transport networks with a focus on public transport and active transport. Activity centres may include land uses such as commercial, retail, food and hospitality, medium and high-density housing, entertainment, tourism, civic/community, higher education, and medical services.

What are the different types of centres?

Activity centres are categorised under seven classifications within the activity centre hierarchy.

These include;

  • Capital City
  • Strategic Centres
  • Specialised Centres
  • Secondary Centres
  • District Centres
  • Neighbourhood Centres
  • Local Centres.

The roles and characteristics of each activity centre can be found within Appendix 1 of SPP 4.2.

What aspects of planning does the revised policy cover?

Activity Centre Hierarchy – sets out the hierarchy and high-level function of activity centres in the Metropolitan (Perth), Peel and Bunbury regions.

Land uses – encourages the development of multi-functional activity centres with a wide range of different land uses and higher-density housing.

Employment – encourages employment-generating activities in activity centres and improved access to jobs for local communities.

Urban form – activity centres should be defined by a compact urban form with pedestrian-dominated streetscapes.

Movement and access – promotes a balanced movement network that prioritises walking, cycling and public transport over private vehicles, and supports better management of parking in activity centres.

Major and out-of-centre development – provides guidance and a methodology for assessing the impact and benefits of major development within and outside designated activity centres.

Why has the policy been reviewed?

SPP 4.2 aims to ensure planning, development and decision making adequately consider the distribution, function, broad land use, access and urban form considerations for activity centres.

The current version of SPP 4.2 pre-dates the WAPC’s Perth and Peel @ 3.5 Million strategy and the Government’s Planning Reform and METRONET projects. It has been reviewed to address concerns by some stakeholders about implementation issues and to ensure the policy remains contemporary and responsive.

What are the main differences between the draft and existing policies?

The revised policy is better aligned with current State Planning Policies, particularly the Design WA policy suite and the Government’s Planning Reform and METRONET projects.

The Model Centre Framework at Appendix 2 of the current policy is replaced with the SPP 7.2 Precinct Design and Guidelines.

The revised policy also applies to the Bunbury Metropolitan Area, in addition to Perth and Peel.

How does the revised policy relate to Design WA?

As part of its review, the policy has been aligned with Design WA Stage Two – SPP 7.2 Precinct Design and has been prepared to integrate with Design WA Stage Three – State Planning Policy 7.1 Neighbourhood Design (previously Liveable Neighbourhoods). 

It provides guidance on the identification, distribution, function and broad land use considerations for activity centres at the strategic level, while SPP 7.1 and SPP 7.2 provide guidance on the location, distribution and design of activity centres at the structure plan level. The Design WA policies effectively replace the Model Centre Framework contained within the previous version of SPP 4.2.

Design WA

How does the revised policy relate to planning reforms?

The review of SPP 4.2 is a key part of the legislative and planning reform agenda to create a more flexible, responsive and contemporary planning system. 

The new policy will provide clear guidance to deliver contemporary outcomes when planning major centres with a mix of uses including retail, commercial, community services and medium and high density housing. 

How does the revised policy relate to METRONET?

The revised policy has a greater focus on encouraging a greater diversity of land use and employment opportunities and housing choice within activity centres that have a train station, such as METRONET precincts.

Are activity centre plans still required?

Under the Planning and Development (Local Planning Schemes) Regulations 2015, activity centre plans have been replaced by precinct structure plans. In accordance with SPP 4.2, these must be prepared for strategic, specialised, secondary and district centres in accordance with the requirements of the Regulations and SPP 7.2 Precinct Design and Precinct Design Guidelines. They may also be prepared for local and neighbourhood centres at the discretion of the WAPC.

Existing activity centre plans remain valid until their expiry.

Just like activity centre plans, a precinct structure plan for an activity centre outlines land use, density and development, access arrangements, infrastructure, environmental assets and community facilities to facilitate future subdivision and development.

Are Needs Assessments still required?

Yes. A Needs Assessment is required to support a Local Planning Strategy. If the local planning strategy is more than 5 years old, a new needs assessment may be prepared to support a Local Planning Scheme/Scheme Amendment, Precinct Structure Plan or standard Structure Plan at the district or local level.

Are Retail Sustainability Assessments still required?

Now called a Net Benefit Test, these will only be required for a proposal that exceeds the need identified in a strategy or structure plan informed by a Needs Assessment, or for an out-of-centre development.

The Net Benefit Test ensures that a proposal aligns with the objectives of SPP 4.2 and will provide a net benefit to the community. 

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Published

30 August 2021

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