News  »  A guide to the Planning Process

North Hertfordshire District Council A GUIDE TO THE PLANNING PROCESS

1. RECEIPT - Once received, the application is checked to ensure that it is correct. Should the application be incomplete or invalid a letter is sent to the applicant or agent requesting further information. Please refer to the guidance notes included with the application form for all the information we need to proceed with the application. ↓

2. REGISTRATION - When we have all the required information the application will be entered onto the formal statutory register and the statutory 8-week period begins. The statutory period for major applications is 13 weeks. This is the time period within which the application should be determined. If we take longer an appeal can be made to the Secretary of State for one of his inspectors to make a decision. We will send the applicant or agent a letter acknowledging receipt of the application and informing them of the expiry date of the statutory period. The statutory register includes a copy of the application form and any plans submitted with the application, which are available to view on our website https://pa2.north-herts.gov.uk/online-applications ↓

3. CONSULTATION - The Council is required by the legislation to notify neighbouring occupiers that an application has been received. This will usually be carried out by means of a letter. In some cases it may be necessary to display a site notice. With applications, for example major, listed building and conservation area applications, a press notice will be required. Town and Parish Councils, other consultees and interested parties will also need to be consulted at this time. The Council allows 21 days for comments following notification. We aim to send out notifications within 5 days of receiving the application. . ↓

4. RECOMMENDATION - The Planning Officer will visit the site and will assess the proposal against the Council’s planning policies and any other material considerations. Any responses and representations received will be taken into account. ↓

5. THE DECISION - Normally applications are decided under the delegated decision making procedure. This involves a report and recommendation by the Planning Officer, which is considered and determined by the Development & Conservation Manager. Decisions are made on a daily basis and the majority of applications are determined by officers in this way and not reported to a committee. Major developments of strategic significance, applications by the Council or its officers and applications called in by Councillors or where a contrary view has been expressed by a statutory consultee are determined by the Planning Control Committee which meets on a 4/5 week basis. ↓

6. ISSUING THE DECISION - Once the application has been decided the applicant or agent will be sent a formal notice stating the Council’s decision. This is a legal document and should be kept with the Title Deeds. In addition those who have submitted representations will be advised of the decision. ↓

7. RIGHT TO APPEAL - Once the applicant or agent has received the decision there is a right of appeal by the applicant to the Planning Inspectorate against a refusal or any condition attached to a permission. A note will be included on the decision notice giving details of how to do this. There is no right of appeal by a third party in respect of a planning decision. Those who have submitted representations in relation to the planning application will be notified of the appeal and invited to make any further representations.

Please keep hold of this information. It is a useful guide to what is happening with your application when it is in our hands. If you want to know which stage of the process your application has reached then please call the Duty Planning Officer on 01462 474000 or email planning.control@north-herts.gov.uk  or visit our website https://pa2.northherts.gov.uk/online-applications  which gives information on each application submitted and its status in the planning process. If you are an agent submitting an application on behalf of a client, then please pass this information to them so that they will know how to find out about the progress of their application. Please note that this is a guide only. Thank you.

February 2019