Air Quality Screening Assessment for Planning

Do You Need a Full Air Quality Assessment? Screening First, Decide Fast

This screening service is designed to identify whether a full Air Quality Assessment is likely to be required. It is a proportionate, pre-planning review — not a technical assessment. If a full technical assessment is needed, see our Air Quality Assessment service. Screening reduces uncertainty early, avoids unnecessary modelling where impacts are clearly negligible, and prevents late-stage planning delays where air quality constraints are missed. The output is a clear yes/no/conditional recommendation that planning teams can act on.

When a Screening Assessment Is Needed

Screening is typically required where:

• You need to confirm whether air quality is a material planning consideration for a site
• A project is near an AQMA, busy roads, junctions or industrial emission sources
• Traffic changes may occur but significance is uncertain
• Combustion plant/energy centre emissions may require assessment
• Planners or Environmental Health Officers ask for early clarification before validation
• You want to reduce programme risk by confirming scope before design is fixed

Purpose of the Service

The purpose of screening is to provide an early, defensible scope decision. It helps teams avoid two common problems: producing a full assessment when it is not necessary (time/cost), or discovering late that a full AQA is required (delay/redesign).

How Screening Works in Practice

Screening typically reviews location context, receptor sensitivity, AQMA status, background air quality, likely traffic changes, and policy expectations. The output is a clear recommendation: no further work, targeted monitoring, proportionate modelling, or a full AQA with defined pollutants and assessment scenarios.

Scope and Typical Outputs

If a full assessment is required, see Air Quality Assessments.

• Site and receptor review (where exposure occurs and why it matters)
• Policy and guidance alignment (local requirements and commonly applied thresholds)
• Traffic/emissions screening to identify whether changes could be significant
• Combustion plant screening where energy centres or generators are proposed
• Clear next steps (monitoring/modelling scope, timescales, data needs)

Standards, Guidance and Planning Context

Screening recommendations are commonly informed by IAQM/EPUK planning guidance and LAQM technical guidance, alongside local plan policy and Environmental Health expectations.

What the Service Delivers

• A concise screening note or report suitable for planning submission support
• A clear recommendation on whether a full AQA is required
• Defined scope: pollutants, scenarios, modelling needs and monitoring needs
• Programme guidance: what data is needed and when to start to avoid delays

Who This Is For

• Developers and planning consultants needing fast scope clarity
• Architects and design teams needing early constraints input
• Projects near busy roads, AQMAs, or sensitive receptors

Limitations and Scope

Screening is a proportionate early-stage service. Where uncertainty remains high, targeted monitoring or modelling may still be required to support a planning decision.