P8.7: The Planning Committee & Report

At the outset, the Local Planning Authority should identify a target date for the application to be reported to Members for decision at Planning Committee. The importance of large scale development projects, the level of interest shown in a proposal, and the complexity of issues will often justify the holding of a specially arranged meeting of the Planning Committee to consider the application rather than a scheduled meeting with a larger overall agenda of items / reports.

The holding of a special meeting will often assist in the preparation of a relevant committee report and agenda, having regard to lead in times for preparation, typing, printing and distribution etc. Access to information requirements mean that reports / agenda must be made publicly available a minimum of 5 working days before the meeting date. In preparing for the Committee due regard should be taken of arrangements for public speaking since the opportunity to address the Members either in support of or opposition to a proposal has increasingly been adopted by authorities. Although most authorities have set protocols for timings etc the nature of large scale applications is such that specific procedures will need to be considered on merit. Due regard should also be given to how information, plans etc are to be made available, displayed and presented at the meeting.

In the case of applications where last minute negotiations may be anticipated to resolve outstanding issues, planning officers will need to set time aside to take forward discussion with applicants and enable any relevant late information to be considered in advance of and presented to the Committee. In instances where the application spans more than one authority there should be a coordinated approach to the reporting of the proposals.

One element of the overall timescale which is frequently underestimated is the actual time required to draft and finalise the officers committee report. Sufficient time should be set aside for this crucial task. Whilst it is appreciated that most Authority’s have their own standard report templates ATLAS believes that certain key principles should apply with the objective that a report is comprehensive, informative and accurate.

To achieve this the report needs to be well structured with information and commentary laid out under key headings. These headings would include;

• Site Description – a concise statement of the physical characteristics of the site, and its relationship to adjacent land and buildings drawing out any specifics constraints which impact on the overall consideration of proposals,
• History – identification of relevant site planning history, including any appeals etc, and any important project background information,
• Proposal Description – a summary of the proposed development including mix of uses, access arrangements and nature of built form if known,
• Consultation / Notification responses – a summary of the responses received from consultees and local residents / amenity groups,
• Planning Policy – identification of relevant national, regional and local polices and commentary as to how they apply to the proposals,
• Determining Issues – summary listing of the issues against which the proposals will be judged,
• Considerations – a structured assessment as to the acceptability of the proposals judged against the listed determining issues. Ideally this assessment should start with the acceptability of the principle of development and uses, and be followed by a logical sequence of issues such as access, layout, impact on neighbours etc

It is important that the committee report is clear and does not overwhelm the reader with text. Much of the information can and should be extracted into appendices to ensure that the main body of the report enables the reader to understand the proposals and recommendations as soon as possible.