Information About the Planning Process at Local Level

Information about the Planning Process at Local Level

• The Government issues a quota of housing to be built by each Local Authority over a set number of years.

• The Local Authority draws up a Local Development Framework (LDF) which details where within the District houses are expected to be built.

• Principle Villages and towns are expected to provide most of the housing demanded by the Government.

• Edwinstowe is a Principle Village.

• The LDF, drawn up in 2011 is currently being revised.

When a planning application is received at NSDC the Parish Council is asked for comments and whether they are in agreement with the application.

The Parish Council Planning Committee view the application and send back their comments

If the Parish Council do not agree with a planning application, but the officers recommend approval, it goes to NSDC Planning Committee for consideration. If both agree with the application it can often be decided at officer level without coming to the NSDC Planning Committee.

There are 39 NSDC Councillors, 15 of whom are nominated by their political group to serve on the Planning Committee. The Planning Committee is not subject to Party politics. No District Councillors are bound by the decisions of Parish Council in their Wards.

All Planning Committee members are expected to consider each application with an open mind. They have to declare an interest if it could be deemed that this is not the case. (Because of this I choose not to attend Parish Council planning meetings. There is no legal reason why I should not do so.) A pecuniary interest must be declared if the member may financially profit from an application if approved.

For larger developments, not single houses, the planning process may be in two parts, the Outline stage and the Reserved Matters stage. The Outline stage determines the principle of development on a site and the nature of that development. Reserved Matters covers the detail of how the site is developed.

All applications which are forwarded to the Planning Committee have information about all comments received whether from the public or from Parish Councils. Visits are often made to the sites concerned on the morning of the day on which a particular application will be heard.

Applications turned down can be referred to a Government Inspector who may, and often does, reverse the decision of the Planning Authority. Applications approved are not subject to the appeal process.