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Phase 1 to Phase 2: Planning Help Resource

A move from Phase 1 to Phase 2 usually means the desk-based review has identified enough potential risk to justify intrusive investigation.

Quick answer

Clients often ask what it means when a Phase 1 Desk Study recommends a Phase 2 Ground Investigation. The short answer is that the initial research has identified enough potential risk that assumptions are no longer enough.

Advice

Use this guidance to check what may be needed before you submit information.

If the wording on your planning condition, tender request or site constraint is unclear, send it to EnviroSolution and we can advise which report, survey or assessment is likely to be relevant.

Guidance

Why the move happens

A Phase 1 assessment reviews mapping, environmental records, geology and site history. If those records suggest plausible pollutant linkages, the next step is to collect real data from the ground itself.

Guidance

What should happen next

The project team should not treat the recommendation as a generic note. It usually means intrusive works need to be scoped against the planning condition, proposed development and relevant risks. The quality of this next step will affect timescales, cost certainty and the usefulness of the final report.

Advice

How this resource helps

This planning help piece is intended to stop that recommendation from feeling vague. It gives clients a clearer understanding of what the transition means and how to brief the next stage properly.

Need project support?

Send the site details and we’ll help identify the right next step.

Include the planning wording, site address, deadline and any supporting drawings or previous reports.