Planning applications procedure

This page summarises the procedure for determining planning applications by Area Committees and the Strategic Development Control Committee.

The determination of planning applications is a quasi-judicial process. This means that it is more tightly governed by legislation than most of the other decisions that this committee is likely to make.

The procedure

If members support the officer recommendation and no-one has registered to speak from the floor, the Chair may move straight to a vote without an officer presentation. If a request to speak has been made from the floor then the Planning Officer will make a brief presentation on the most important aspects of the application.

Members of the public, applicants and agents may speak on planning applications under the following conditions:

• applicant and objectors are given five minutes each to make their representations
• a single speaker may be nominated to represent a group
• requests to speak on planning applications must be made to the committee before 12pm on the day of the meeting by completing a request form
• prior requests to speak will not be accepted without a contact name and telephone number, which may be passed on, with permission, to other parties who also request to speak at the meeting
• the Chair may increase the time allocation as long as the principle of equal time is available to each party
• additional written submissions, or photographs may be presented to the committee through the committee secretary at least two working days before the committee

The committee will then have the opportunity to question the officer.

If members of the public may be concerned or unhappy about the meeting content, they should use our complaints procedure and not address complaints to individual officers or members.

Page last reviewed 14 May 2008