Planning application process

Once an application has been made and the correct fee submitted, it will follow the process outlined below:

1. Validation - the application is checked against the national and local requirements to ensure everything has been submitted that should have been
2. Neighbour and consultee notification period - the public and statutory consultees are notified of the application during a consultation period of 3 weeks - during this time, objections and supporting comments can be submitted
3. Consideration - the application is allocated to an Officer who considers the details submitted and reviews any comments received during the consultation period - the Officer will prepare a report in which they recommend the application for approval or refusal.
4. Application review - the decision is either made at this stage, or the application is referred to Planning Committee for a decision - some applications are required to be determined by the Planning Committee, including those for major development sites and applications which have been ‘called in’ by councillors for determination by the relevant planning committee - find out more about Planning Committee on our FAQs page
5. Decision is issued - the target dates in which planning applications should be determined by are shown below:
   • 8 weeks for householder and minor development
   • 13 weeks if an application is for a major development
   • 16 weeks if an application is subject to an Environmental Impact Assessment

Applications can take longer than these targets if an alternative determination date is agreed with the applicant or their agent.

Planning decisions

When a decision has been made on a planning application, a decision notice will be sent to the applicant or their agent and published on our website. We don't typically write to members of the public or other parties to inform them about the outcome of the planning application individually, but these can all be found on our View and comment on planning applications page.

When planning permission has been granted by the Council, the development must take place in accordance with the approved plans and any conditions which have been attached to the decision notice. Please review the decision notice carefully to check whether there are any conditions that must be complied with before starting work. If this is the case, an application will need to be submitted to either approve (discharge) the conditions or, alternatively, to remove or vary the conditions.

It is likely that most alterations and extensions to a building will require Building Regulations approval. Before any work commences on site, please check Building Regulations.