The Planning Department has compiled a list of the most Frequently Asked Questions about the Planning Process. They can be viewed below.
Advice and guidance in relation to:
is available on our webpage, "Planning guidance for types of development, or land/building usage, which may require Planning Permission"
We don’t make a decision about a planning application until the public has had sufficient time to explore it. By law we can’t determine an application before the expiration of 14 days from the date it is first advertised, published, posted on our website or notified to identified occupiers on neighbouring land.
We request comments within 14 days so that we know your views as soon as possible in the process. In practice we will take into account any representations received that raise material planning considerations before the application is determined. It’s also useful for the applicant to learn about any concerns early, as it may give them an opportunity to make changes. This helps make our decision-making timely and constructive. It also reduces delays at the latter stages of a project too.
Planning legislation states that we also inform ‘any identified occupier on neighbouring land’.
Definition: ‘Neighbouring land’
Land which directly adjoins the application site, or which would adjoin it but for an entry or road less than 20 metres in width.
Definition: ‘Identified occupier’
An ‘occupier of premises within a 90 metre radius of the boundary of the proposed application site’.
If the boundary of your site abuts the red line of an application site but your property is outside of 90m you won’t receive a notification. Your property must be occupied too.
When the Council considers comments made by the public in response to planning applications we can only take material planning considerations into account.
Despite there being no official legal definition for the term material consideration it’s widely understood to mean the fundamentals involved in land-use planning.
Material considerations will vary depending on the specific circumstances of each case but there are two main tests.
Examples of material considerations include:
What’s not considered?
We won’t consider matters which are not relevant to planning such as:
