Planning

We have experienced a large increase in planning application numbers and have at the same time experienced a reduction in staffing levels within the department. As a temporary measure, a Planning Officer’s caseload will be capped at a fixed number to ensure that officers have adequate capacity to assess applications in accordance with legislative and policy requirements. 

Newly received applications will be allocated to a Planning Officer to be checked for validation as soon as an appropriate Officer becomes available.  Consequently, there is likely to be a delay between the receipt of an application and its allocation to a Planning Officer.

This is a temporary emergency measure which will be reviewed on a regular basis.  Once an application has been validated, priority in terms of determination timescales will be given to those applications that relate to the Council’s corporate objective of housing delivery.

The Council has re-published its Validation Checklist without changes and effective as of 20 April 2022.  It is expected that a full review, including amendments, will take place later this year, and will be consulted upon prior to adoption.

Planning is a service that considers applications for a variety of development proposals. Included are house extensions, changes of use of land and buildings, major housing and employment schemes, works to listed buildings, planning appeals and enforcement.