Planning

Coronavirus

At this time we are doing all we can to continue to deliver the Planning Service and I would like to assure you that the team remain committed to providing the best possible service in the circumstances. Our officers are still available to help and advise, you can get in touch using the details on the Key Contacts page below.

In addition, with immediate effect, all permissions where the legislation allows us to will now have a four year period within which to commence the consent. I realise that this does not deal with approvals about to expire where you have not been able to commence - we are waiting for primary legislation on this, but the Council feels that to extend the life of permissions we are issuing now may help in the longer term to aid recovery.

The receipt and validation of planning applications will be smoother if you use the Planning Portal for submission electronically rather than sending paper copies, as this might take longer to handle dependent upon the resources available at our offices. Whilst there will inevitably be some disruption of the service we will endeavour to keep this to a minimum.

Where an unimplemented planning application which was due to lapse between 19 August 2020 and 31 December 2020 will automatically be extended to 1 May 2021; there is no further approval required. Where an unimplemented planning application which expired between 23 March 2020 and 19 August 2020 will be extended to 1 May 2021, subject to an Additional Environmental Approval being granted.

All Listed Building Consents which expire between 23 March 2020 and 31 December 2020 will be extended to 1 May 2021.  Listed Building Consents will not be subject to a requirement to obtain Additional Environmental Approval.

More information on these measures, including the process for Additional Environmental Approval can be found in the planning practice guidance.

Until at least the end of the current lockdown period, it is the Council's intention to comply with the Secretary of State's request (in regard to our recently approved Local Development Orders) that we do not determine any of the condition discharge requests that would enable the LDOs to be relied upon. However, the Council will continue to receive, consult on and process applications to discharge such conditions particularly those concerned with the safe evacuation of sites but short of actually determining applications to approve such plans.

Thank you,

Mike Gildersleeves, Assistant Director - Planning