Published: Thursday, 23rd October 2025
More than 170 attendees from 57 councils gathered in Rochester, as Medway played host to the biggest Open Digital Planning event held to-date.
The Open Digital Planning Camp saw planning experts from around the country gather at Rochester Corn Exchange as part of a drive to transform council planning services.
It’s all part of a series of initiatives organised by Open Digital Planning, a multi council partnership funded by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government; and while several councils have hosted previous Open Digital Planning events, last week’s digital camp was the biggest national event held so far.
Medway was one of the first councils to join Open Digital Planning: a visionary, collaborative project to design the next generation of planning services for local government, helping us to be more efficient in delivery. It’s already helped to improve our Planning Application service, including introducing an online checker tool to help you check requirements for changes you want to make to your property, and whether your property has any planning restrictions.
The camp brings councils together to collaborate and improve their planning services, including digital skills, creating a community where local planning authorities support and learn from each other.
Cllr Simon Curry, Portfolio Holder for Climate Change and Strategic Regeneration said: “it’s great to see so many people coming together to back the Open Digital Planning initiative, which is driving positive change in local government. Efficient and open planning is an essential part of our remit, and the planning service is hugely important to our long term goals to drive regeneration, in Medway and across the country.”