Ardent reaches industry-first 100 DCOs

We are proud to announce that Ardent has reached a significant milestone in delivering some of the UK’s largest development projects. We’ve just been instructed on our 100th Development Consent Order (DCO), making us the first consultancy to achieve this milestone and solidifying our position as one of the most experienced and trusted practices in the industry.

DCOs were introduced as part of the Planning Act 2008 as a way of helping to achieve timely consent for schemes such as major transport, utilities, renewables and other infrastructure projects.

With nearly 200 experts across our offices in London, Birmingham, Leeds, Warrington, Glasgow, and Dublin, Ardent has been at the forefront of this process since the beginning, having worked on the first-ever DCO to be instructed in the UK – a waste to energy facility known as Rookery South in Stewartby, Bedfordshire.

Ardent assisted in the production of application documents such as the book of reference and land plans as well as supporting the project through the identification of land and property impacts, landowner engagement and consultation, and negotiations with landowners for the acquisition of land and rights necessary to implement the scheme.

The Infrastructure Planning Commission granted the DCO in 2011 to Covanta Energy and the facility now generates enough electricity to power 112,500 homes.

Ardent has since supported a range of projects, including 25 solar energy developments and multiple offshore wind projects that, between them, will generate enough electricity to power over two million UK homes. We have also supported a range of rail and highway projects, strategic rail freight interchanges, overhead electricity lines and multiple energy from waste schemes.

One of its most complex instructions is the crucial role Ardent played in Sizewell C Nuclear Power Station – one of the largest infrastructure projects in the UK – through its land referencing and its consents management teams.

Our team supported the DCO application in 2018 through to submission in 2020 and has continued to provide consultancy on the project after the DCO was granted in 2022, to bridge the gap between the team that achieved consent and the contractors working to deliver it.

Ardent’s 100th DCO instruction is another major solar project that will deliver over 500mw of electricity, supporting land and community engagement services, and once again utilising our Atlas digital applications for all engagement interactions.

Jonathan Stott, Group Managing Director comments ‘It is an incredible achievement to hit this milestone’

“The team has supported well over half of the nationally significant infrastructure projects to come forward across the country over the past decade-and-a-half.

“The social, environmental and economic benefits of that work cannot be underestimated as it is helping to deliver energy, transport and development that are, by their very definition, nationally significant and fits in with our company purpose of delivering life-improving change.

Richard Caten, chief executive, added: “We are proud of our heritage in the infrastructure sector, where we were advising on major projects for 15 years prior to the DCO regime being established.

“To build on that experience and become the first consultancy to reach this milestone speaks volumes of our experience and expertise, and we’re grateful to the many clients who have trusted us to advise them through the process.”

Viki James, the managing director of Ardent’s consents management consultancy, commented: “DCOs remain a very effective consenting route for most major projects, and our team plays an essential role in supporting clients to take consents into delivery.

“As an industry, we have to make sure that the gap between consent and delivery is bridged and that’s something Ardent does well because we don’t look to achieve consent for consent’s sake. We leverage our experience to ensure consents are deliverable, and work with contractors to make sure they are familiar with the conditions, opportunities and limitations that the DCO provides, avoiding the pitfalls that can otherwise appear as projects move from consent to delivery.”

Ardent expects more renewables projects to come forward for DCOs in the coming years, including battery storage and hydrogen as well as more solar and off-shore wind.

Stott added: “Across our range of disciplines and our teams, we offer a truly unique range of services to support major infrastructure projects , and we’re looking forward to our 101st instruction in the next few weeks.”