Danny Wiggins

Danny has been a town planning consultant for 30 years, specialising in statutory planning systems and local planning controls. He has worked at all three levels of government and for a range of private sector clients. Examples of his work include external reviews of local council development assessment (DA) systems, advice to the State Government on DA items (and training), facilitating the IP&R framework at a range of local councils, authorship of the DUAP publication “Guiding Development: better outcomes”, and work with the Heart Foundation/ Premier’s Council for Active Living and the UNSW Healthy Built Environments Program (HBEP) on supportive environments for community health and well-being. As well as consultancy work, Danny is also an experienced educator and facilitator, having been involved in the preparation and delivery of education and training packages for a variety of State and Local Government agencies and Universities. He has an honours degree in Town Planning and a PhD in residential location theory.

Academic Qualifications

• 1976 Bachelor of Town Planning (Honours Class 1), University of New South Wales.
• 1981 Doctor of Philosophy, University of New South Wales.
  Topic: Residential location decisions and metropolitan structure.

Professional Qualifications

• Life Fellow, Planning Institute of Australia

Employment History

• 2006- present Danny Wiggins (Planning, Facilitation and Education Services)
• 1988-2006 Partner - Blinkhorn and Wiggins (Planning and Design)
• 1981-88 Lecturer - Town Planning, University of New South Wales
• 1979-81 Town Planner - Warringah Council.

Professional Activities And Awards

2018 Publication: ‘Your Guide to the DA Process’ nominated (by DP&E) for a PIA Award

2010-20 Member, Healthy Planning Expert Working Group (facilitator 2010-2017)

2012 UNSW Faculty of the Built Environment Dean’s Award for Teaching Excellence (Sessional Staff).

2011 PIA (NSW) Commendation: Improving Planning Processes and Practices Award: Development and Active Living

2003-4 Member, Minister’s Section 94 Taskforce.

1998-2002 Member, State Government DIPNR’s Part 4 Reference Group.

1985-1993 Representative on the State Government Ordinance 4 (Planning Qualifications) Committee. Chairperson 1993.

1983-7 Royal Australian Planning Institute (NSW Division). Committee member; Vice President/ Secretary 1986-7

Examples Of Projects 1998-2020

NSW Department Planning, Industry and Environment. (2019) Authorised (State-wide) Training Provider (UTS Team): Local Strategic Planning Statements.

Active Living NSW (2019). Liveability and Local Government: a guide to embedding active living and healthy eating into Local Government’s strategic planning processes; including state-wide capacity building seminars.

NSW Department of Environment and Planning (2018). Your Guide to the DA Process; Report: Working with councils on the DA Best Practice Guide.

NSW Building Professionals Board. Practice Guide for Accredited Certifiers (draft). Writer on the Team.

UNSW, UTS and WSU. Curriculum design, casual lecturer.

Premier’s Council for Active Living. Development and Active Living: designing projects for active living; Supportive Environments: utilizing the Planning system to enable active living; Utilising the IPR Framework to promote active living

Shoalhaven City, Goulburn Mulwaree and Snowy River Shire Councils. Facilitation of Local Government Integrated Planning and Reporting Framework.

NSW Department of Urban Affairs and Planning. Guiding Development: better outcomes. Production of an ongoing series of practice notes on the operation of NSW development assessment system.

Kiama Council. Review of residential controls for Gerringong and Gerroa.

Marrickville, Sutherland, Canterbury, Kiama, Auburn and Hurstville Councils. External reviews of development approval systems.

Wollongong, North Sydney, Leichhardt, Kiama, Sutherland and Shoalhaven Councils; UNSW; Premier’s Council for Active Living; Active Living NSW. Facilitation of community, staff and Councillor workshops on a range of management and planning issues.

Warringah Council/ Planning NSW. Independent Review of WLEP 2000.

National Parks and Wildlife Service. Environmental Assessment and REF Preparation: a two-day training course. Production of course program and training material.

NSW Department of Urban Affairs and Planning. Authorised training provider – Environmental Planning and Assessment (Amendment) Act 1998 (in conjunction with Centre for Local Government UTS and P&A Walsh Consulting P/L).

Western Sydney Waste Board. A statutory planning framework for resource recovery facilities in Western Sydney.

Parramatta and Botany Bay City Councils. LEP and DCP on Outdoor Advertising.

Combined Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils. “Waste Not…” model waste management guidelines.

Major Publications 1998-2020

Liveability and Local Government: a guide to embedding active living and healthy eating into Local Government’s strategic planning processes (2020), draft; Active Living NSW

Your Guide to the DA process (2018); NSW Department of Environment and Planning

Utilising the IP&R Framework to promote active living and healthy eating (web-resource) (2015). Premier’s Council for Active Living

Development and Active Living: designing projects for active living (2010). Premier’s Council for Active Living (in conjunction with BBC Consulting Planners).

Supportive Environments: utilising the NSW Planning system to enable active living (2008). Premier’s Council for Active Living

Planning for Bushfire Protection (2006) Sydney, NSW Rural Fire Service.

Guiding Development: better outcomes (1999, 2001). Sydney, DUAP.

Approvals 98: Guide to the Environmental Planning Assessment (Amendment) Act 1997 and associated legislation (April 1998). Sydney, UTS (in conjunction with P & A Walsh P/L and UTS Centre for Local Government).

Waste Not… a model Development Control Plan and Local Approvals Policy (1996). Sydney, Combined Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils (in conjunction with UTS Centre for Local Government).

Guide to Regulatory Provisions: Local Government Act 1993 and associated legislation (1993).UTS, Sydney (in conjunction with UTS CLG). Supplement, 1994.

Local Approvals Review Program. Education and Training Modules (1993). Canberra, Commonwealth Office of Local Government.

“Professional Challenges in Local Planning” in Freestone R. (Ed) Spirited Cities. Sydney. The Federation Press, 1993.

Outdoor Advertising: an urban design-based approach (1991). Sydney, Department of Planning (with S. Blinkhorn).

Development Assessment Manual; Guidelines for councils in processing development applications. (1990). Sydney Local Government and Shires Association (with S. Blinkhorn)