How can the pre-application service help me ?

Our pre-application service is intended to give you a clear picture of the likely outcome of a planning application if you make one. Our pre-application service is intended to:

· identify potential planning issues

· clarify the information we will need to properly consider your application

· highlight things that might need to be the subject of limitation or condition on any permission we grant

· identify possible reasons why we might refuse to give you permission.

The pre-application service is intended to be a thorough way in which you can identify the planning issues you may face, investigate possible options before you have committed to them and recognise the areas where you may need to do some more research or gather more information.

We cannot guarantee we will support your proposal if it conflicts with our planning policies but we want you to have a realistic view of your planning circumstance before you make an application.

If you instruct a professional agent to represent you we will engage with them and ask them to agree to work with us through our pre-application service. We will expect your agent to agree to work with us and respect our judgement. Further details on this are provided below. We may ask your agent to agree to the holding of a pre-application site meeting with other parties on your land.

How do I get advice through your pre-application service ?

If you want to engage in our pre-application service you need to appreciate that the planning process is not “closed” and that many other people and organisations have an input to us through formal and informal consultation.

If we are to effectively help you get a clear picture of your planning position you need to help us by engaging, with us, with these people and outside organisations. If you are not willing to engage in open pre-application dialogue we will find it difficult to give you a realistic view and you may find that you encounter unforeseen consequences as you go through the planning process.

We will ask you to co-operate with us in agreeing the format and extent of other people / organisations involvement in our pre-application service. If you do not wish for that you are free to withdraw from the service at any time.

If your plans change as a result of the advice or views coming out of our pre-application work we want you to feel free to revise them and to re-engage in whatever pre-application dialogue is appropriate. We would rather that you amended your plans – if needs be more than once - before you make your application if there are things about your project which can be improved.

If you make an application and subsequently wish to change your plans to address some unforeseen issues we would normally have to re-start our consultation process. This means that we would have to allow consultees a further period to respond, typically 21 days. This would introduce unwelcome delay and uncertainty into the process especially if our consultees do not support the changes you wish to make.

We are committed to delivering a service which gives both you and the community a clear and timely decision. In the spirit of co-operation we would therefore encourage you not to request to alter your plans once you have submitted to a formal application. We will not normally accept any alterations other than very minor changes which would not lead us to re-consult anyone.

Who would normally be involved in pre-application dialogue ?

Your key point of contact is your planning case officer. He or she will normally be your contact throughout the planning process. If you have any questions about the planning process or the pre-application service we offer the officer should be able to answer.

With some planning authorities pre-application dialogue has often been somewhat closed and participation has tended to be limited to advisers with an input on technical matters.

We take a different view. We recognise that the planning process is open to public involvement and that the community has an interest in the outcome which we believe should be acknowledged at the pre-application stage.

Our pre-application service looks to involve not only technical advisers but also to get community participation. Who will actually be involved is a matter for the judgement of the planning officer and we ask you to respect that. If the planning officer considers it appropriate we may ask you to engage in an officer-led site meeting involving other parties. If that is the case we will normally ask that a representative of the Parish or Town Council attends and ask you to invite your neighbours.

What is the purpose of an officer led site meeting?

The objective is to engage important community consultees – including both your Parish Council and your immediate neighbours - in a carefully managed and focused discussion of the planning issues on the site. We tend to find that applicants get a clearer picture and understanding of the concerns that a local community might have through these meetings.

We also find that these meetings are a useful way for applicants to really explain what they want to do and why they want to do it. A site meeting can also help clarify what are – or are not – relevant planning issues and to ensure that differing views are clearly expressed and appreciated. In agreeing to engage in the pre-application service we would ask you to allow other members of the community – including your neighbours - to visit your site for the purpose of the meeting.

We cannot guarantee that anyone’s view will change at a site meeting but we do believe that open dialogue is likely to give you the clearest view of local community issues which would otherwise be likely to emerge during the application process and lead to conflict and delay in the processing of your application / project. We also believe that these meetings demonstrate a willingness to explain and discuss proposals and a willingness to listen by all those involved. We have often found that these meetings have helped provide a compromise solution in otherwise difficult situations.

What is the status of the advice I receive ?

The planning advice you get will be the planning officers professional opinion of your proposal. Planning issues and planning policies can sometimes be open to a wide variety of interpretations and sometimes it is difficult to predict with certainty what an outcome may be. In undertaking consultation on your application the Council is also bound to take account of any material considerations raised by consultees. The planning process cannot offer you an absolute guarantees but we will do our best to give you an honest opinion of the likely outcome of your application. The officer advice you receive does not, however, prevent the Council from exercising its discretion.

If you have instructed a professional agent it is expected that your agent will advise you about the foreseeable issues associated with your proposal. We will also assume that your agent can advise you about the risks which may arise if you do not follow our advice. We understand that your agent will have given you professional advice and will progress your application as he has submitted it.

I have been told I need to enter a legal agreement. What does this mean ?

Our planning policies require legal commitments from applicants to address issues like the provision, and retention of, affordable housing or open / recreation space and community infrastructure. In such cases we will usually ask an applicant to have provided a completed legal agreement before the Council grants planning permission. If that agreement is not provided within a reasonable timescale then planning permission may be refused.

In some other cases we may ask you to enter a legal agreement to ensure that the future use of your land / buildings is reasonably controlled in a way that could not be secured by planning condition.

Legal agreements are commonly asked for in the following types of cases (this list is not exhaustive) :

• new residential development
• residential barn conversion schemes
• redevelopment schemes

Amongst other things we will usually ask for a legal agreement to secure:

• affordable housing
• open space and social infrastructure
• residential amenity
• highways infrastructure

The process of agreeing the principal features (known as “heads of terms”) to such a legal agreement and resolving title issues can take some time. If you have been told at pre-application stage that a legal agreement may be required then we recommend that you take your own legal advice and have the legal agreement preparation well work in hand before you consider making an application.

In the spirit of co-operation we would ask you to provide the completed agreement no later than 6 weeks after submission of your application unless your application is categorised as a “major” application in which case the timescale for completion should be mutually agreed with your planning case officer.

How are planning decisions made ?

The actual route to a decision will depend, in part, on the nature of your proposal , the consultation responses we receive and the planning officers judgement as to the most appropriate route. Planning decisions can be made in three ways:

• at planning committee,
• at Referrals committee - in the case of applications which are complex or raise important issues of planning policy or
• by planning officers under delegated powers

Statistically most applications are not controversial and can be decided by officers under delegated powers.

PRE-APPLICATION ADVICE – USING A PROFESSIONAL AGENT

When might I use a professional agent?

When making a planning application you may wish to use a professional agent to act for you and advise on the planning issues involved. This may be helpful to you if your project involves complex or potentially controversial planning issues or requires particular conservation / design expertise.

We cannot recommend any particular professional agent but there are a range of professions who regularly act for clients in planning matters. The following list of professional organizations may be of use to you when selecting an agent. Please bear in mind that this list is not exhaustive and other professionals may be able to help you.

The Royal Town Planning Institute www.rtpi.org.uk

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors www.rics.org.uk

The Chartered Institute of Architectural Technologists www.biat.org.uk

The Royal Institute of British Architects www.riba.org.uk

When you instruct a professional agent to act for you then we will normally direct all relevant correspondence and enquiries through them. When we make a decision on your application our notice of decision will be sent to your agent.

If you have instructed a professional agent we expect that your agent will advise you about the foreseeable issues associated with your proposal. We will also assume that your agent can advise you about the risks which may arise if you do not follow our advice. We understand that your agent will have given you professional advice and will progress your application as he has submitted it.

Will the use of a professional agent affect the pre-application service I get ?

We will expect your agent to engage with us, through our pre-application advice service, and to constructively participate in that. We will expect your agent to appreciate that the planning process is not “closed” and that many other people and organisations have an input to us through formal and informal consultation.

If we are to effectively help you get a clear picture of your planning position your agent needs to help us by engaging, with us, with these people and outside organisations. If your agent is not willing to engage in open pre-application dialogue we will find it difficult to give them and you a realistic view and you may find that you encounter unforeseen consequences as your application goes through the planning process.

We will ask your agent to co-operate with us in agreeing the format and extent of other people / organisations involvement in our pre-application service.

If your plans change as a result of the advice or views coming out of our pre-application work we want your agent to feel free to revise them and to re-engage in whatever pre-application dialogue is appropriate. We would rather you’re your agent amended your plans – if needs be more than once - before making your application if there are things about your project which can be improved

What responsibilities to the pre-application advice process will you expect of my professional agent ?

The Planning Advisory Service has recently published national guidance promoting pre-application discussions. We welcome that and will expect professional agents to proceed in dialogue, with their clients agreement, in general accord with the “responsibilities of the developer” promoted by the Planning Advisory Service. These are:

• allow sufficient time and resources to facilitate full preapplication discussions and project development, and seek agreement on target dates for the submission and determination of the planning application

• ensure that representatives sent to meetings have the authority to negotiate effectively

• respond within mutually agreed timescales to requests for further information and/or amendments

• agree and contribute to consultation and participation arrangements, which may involve public meetings and/or exhibitions

• attend meetings with Council officers as and when required

• prepare submission papers in a format that reflects the way that Committee papers are prepared and refers to appropriate policy and guidance

• provide a completed high quality planning application that takes account of the advice provided, including all necessary plans, illustrative material and supporting statements.