Applying for Planning Permission

Like all Local Planning Authorities' the District Council delegates the determination of certain planning applications to officers rather than the Planning Committee.  In summary, under the Council's adopted scheme of delegation, all applications are delegated to officers with the following exceptions:

• Where a District Councillor requests determination of an application by the Planning Committee within a prescribed period (i.e. within 28 days of the publication of the Council's weekly list of applications on which that application appears);
• Applications where the intended decision would depart from the Council's adopted planning policies;
• Applications where the Development Control Manager considers that determination by Planning Committee would be more appropriate;
• Applications to which the following level of counter representation has been received: 5 letters representing different households and/ or the Parish Council Meeting (ie at least 5 counter representations in total which can include 4 households and the Parish) raising valid planning points; or a petition containing 10 or more signatures.  NB Certificates of Lawfulness are not subject to this provision as they are a means to establish whether something requires planning permission and as such the planning merits of the development are irrelevant (i.e. a it's a technical / legal decision; either it's lawful or it's not).
• Applications submitted by the District Council, its agents or groups related to the Council;
• Applications submitted in which current elected Members or officers of the Council, or members of their household and immediate past employees or members of their household have a beneficial interest
• Applications where the intended decision would depart from the advice given by the Highway Authority; and
• Applications for 10 or more dwellings or 10,000m2 or more of commercial floorspace.

Under the scheme of delegation the case officer prepares a report in a similar way to a Committee report.  The report sets out the key facts and considerations material to determining the application (including all representations) with a recommendation based on these considerations.  The file is then passed to one of the two Area Team Leaders or the Development Control Manager who will consider the report and determine the application.