Agenda item

Councillor Gerry Curran (Chair of the Development Control Committee) and David Trigwell will attend to address this issue and answer questions.  

David Trigwell introduced this item and summarised the background to the Development Management system and Scheme of Delegations which was introduced after 2008.  The scheme provided for the situation where an objection or a comment or support from a parish council is contrary to the recommendation of the planning officer. It gives the opportunity for the planning officer to consult with the Chair of the Development Control Committee to consider whether the application goes before the Committee. The delegation rate was now at 95% and so the remaining 5% of cases receive a high degree of attention from the Committee. The planning department tried to resolve conflicts over land and property – sometimes the issues were settled to people’s satisfaction, sometimes not.

Councillor Gerry Curran (Chair of the Development Control Committee) informed the meeting that he had been a councillor for 17 years and for most of that time, he had been a member of the Development Control Committee. Officers brought applications to him on a weekly basis for a decision on whether they would be referred to Committee. A form is completed and signed to record his decision and is then published. The Chair stated that he did consider all the issues and that some were very difficult. He did agree that correspondence with parishes could be improved.

Peter Duppa-Miller ( Secretary of the B&NES Local Councils Group) made the following statement:

“The purpose of asking Councillor Curran to speak at this meeting is to help Local Councils how to better articulate (in planning policy terms) their recommendations concerning planning applications, so that in those few instances where the Local Council’s recommendation is opposite to that of the planning case officer, the Chair of the Development Control Committee will decide to refer the application to the Committee for determination.”   

David Trigwell replied that he was happy to help parish councils with this.

Councillor Neil Butters (Bathavon South Ward) informed the meeting that South Stoke Parish Council had drafted a Conservation Area Character Appraisal in conjunction with officers, but it seems to have stalled; he asked when it would be published. The officer replied that the department had been concentrating on the Core Strategy and so other work had been delayed as a result. He would need to consult with Cabinet Members to decide future priorities. 

A representative of South Stoke Parish Council commented that parishes do consider planning applications carefully and they are careful to keep within policy guidelines. They wanted to help the planning department to deliver consistent results especially where there were substantial objections. They wanted to be re-assured that the high level of local concern was reflected on by the Chair of the Committee. A representative from Dunkerton asked if parishes could be notified if an application was to be considered by the Chair. The officer agreed that could be implemented. 

A representative from Ubley stated that he was glad to hear that communications were to be improved but that there were still concerns about the delegation process. He referred to a local planning case which had over 30 objections, but which was not referred to Committee; this kind of incident destroyed confidence in the process. The Chair requested that Councillor Gerry Curran to respond to Ubley Parish Council directly on this matter.

Councillor Eric Potter (Chair of the B&NES Local Councils Group) commented that he hoped that the parishes and the Development Control Committee could sort out their differences. Planning Officers needed to work hard to justify their recommendations and improve the lines of communication. The Chief Executive added that planning was not a democratic process as the officers and Committee Members did not have much discretion as they had to follow planning policy. The number of cases where there was an issue was very small, but he agreed that informing parishes of the route of an application would be a good idea.

A representative of Batheaston Parish Council added that the parishes wished to be allies with the Development Control Committee, but that communications were a problem. He asked whether there were situations where planning decisions had been made in advance of the consultation process. David Trigwell replied that the system should not allow that to happen, but that he would investigate.

The Chair thanked Councillor Curran and the officer for their contribution.