Planning Process and Committee

You can download a summary of the planning process

Decision process

Currently, decisions on planning applications are made in one of the following ways:

Internal weekly meeting

The decision is delegated to the Head of Department. These arrangement​s are part of the Council's Standing Orders. Most decisions on planning applications are made this way.

Planning and Highways Committee​

The committee generally considers applications for larger or more controversial developments. The committee meets about every three weeks. There are no meetings during August. You can get more information about the committee on modern.gov.

Agendas and minutes

You can view the agendas and minutes of past Planning and Highways Committees and provisional agendas for future committees on modern.gov.

Attending and speaking

You may attend a committee if your application, or one you have commented on, is being considered.

The applicant and an objector, or a representative of a group of objectors, can speak at the meeting. This is at the discretion of the chair of the committee.

You should download these guidance notes for public speakers, if you wish to speak at a meeting.

You can get a hearing loop device, or headphones from the County Hall Reception.