Are some applications decided by officers without being reported to committee? Which applications are reported to committee?

Any potential approvals of major applications are automatically reported to a Committee to be decided. Other applications may be called in for a Committee decision if either a local Ward Councillor or the Town/Parish Council state a view on the application which is contrary to that of officers, and express planning reasons for taking that view. A formal Scheme of Delegation in the Council's Constitution sets out the parameters for delegated decision making.

About 86-87% of applications are decided by officers without being reported to Committee. In these cases, the case officer will report his or her recommendation to a senior officer with delegated authority to make decisions. The case officer's recommendation may or may not be accepted and the decision is not made until the formal Notice of Decision in signed by the senior officer.

Decisions are dispatched on the day that the decision is made. The Notice will be sent to the applicants' agent, unless there is no agent in which case it will be sent direct to the applicant. Anyone who has commented in writing on the application will normally be notified of the decision by letter within 2 weeks.