Committee Services

Procedures For The Handling Of Planning Applications

1.0 Introduction

1.1 South Ayrshire Council is the local planning authority for all of its administrative area. Accordingly, it receives and determines planning applications in accordance with the provisions of the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 and its associated regulations.

1.2 From its inception in 1996 the Council has operated procedures under which more minor and straightforward planning applications are delegated to the Director of Development, Safety and Regulation for determination. All other planning applications are considered and determined directly by the Council's Planning Committee. Since 2002 the Committee has operated a hearings process which provides applicants and/or their agents, objectors, and supporters with the opportunity to address the Committee. The rules under which this process is conducted are set out at Annex A to this explanatory note.

1.3 The procedures for the handling of planning applications was most recently reviewed by the Council on 9th March 2006: and changes were made in the context of ensuring that the Planning Committee focuses more closely on matters of genuine community interest and greater planning significance.

1.4 The purpose of this explanatory note is to advise users of the Council's Planning Service of the agreed procedures which are currently being operated by the Council.

2.0 Type of Planning Application

2.1 The Council's procedures for the handling of planning applications identifies three categories:-

a) householder: these essentially involve the alteration to, or extension of, a dwellinghouse or other works within the curtilage of a residential property which is ancillary to its residential use;
b) non-householder: these being all other applications; and
c) notices of intention
to develop (NID): these are where the Council wishes to undertake development itself.

3.0 Procedure for the Handling of Householder Planning Applications

3.1 A householder planning application will only be reported to the Planning Committee and thereby qualify for a hearing where:-

a) the Depute Chief Executive and Director of Development, Safety and Regulation considers there to be exceptional circumstances such that the application raises matters of genuine community interest and/or greater planning significance; or
b) competent written objections have been received from five or more separate households or other premises.

4.0 Procedure for the Handling of Non-Householder Planning Applications

4.1 A non-householder planning application will only be reported to the Planning Committee and thereby qualify for a hearing where:-

a) the Depute Chief Executive and Director of Development, Safety and Regulation is minded to approve an application which is significantly or potentially significantly contrary to the development plan or the emerging development plan; or
b) the Council or other public body has a financial interest; or
c) the application is for development that requires the submission of a formal environmental assessment in accordance with the provisions of the statutory regulations relating to environmental assessment; or
d) competent written objections to the application have been received from five or more separate households or other premises; or
e) written objection to the application has been received from the community council within whose boundary all or part of the application site lies.

5.0 Procedure for the Handling of Notice of Intention to Develop

5.1 A notice of intention to develop shall not be the subject of a hearing, but shall be reported to the Planning Committee where:-

a) it has not already achieved the status of deemed planning consent (i.e. no objections have been received within the statutory 21 day period following advertisement of the notice); or
b) it constitutes 'bad neighbour' development as defined in the relevant legislative provisions; or
c) it constitutes a material change in the use of any buildings or other land; or
d) it is significantly contrary or potentially significantly contrary to the development plan and/or the emerging development plan.

6.0 Definition of Competent Written Objection

6.1 A competent written objection shall comprise a letter which provides the name and address of the objector and a signature. In the case of an objection submitted by e-mail the objector shall provide a name and full home address. The letter/e-mail shall set out the grounds for objection. The Head of Planning and Transportation shall have the authority to disregard those objections considered to the clearly frivolous, vexatious and/or abusive.

6.2 A petition of objection will only qualify as a single objection, with only the originator of the petition having the right to be heard if the application is the subject of a hearing. If the originator of the petition is not apparent the petition will be treated as a single written objection, but no person named on the petition shall have the right to be heard unless he/she has also submitted an individual competent written objection.

7.0 Objections Submitted by Community Councils

7.1 In accordance with the provisions of the Scottish Government Planning Advice Note No.47 : "Community Councils and Planning" (paragraph 14) community councils should limit their attention to proposals which raise issues of genuine community interest; householder applications will rarely involve such issues. Accordingly, when submitting an objection to a planning application, a community council will be expected to indicate the nature and extent of any local community consultation it has undertaken in the preparation of such objection.

7.2 In respect of an application to which a community council is objecting it is suggested that the community council takes on a co-ordinating role in contacting other objectors, thereby assisting in the effective presentation of the objectors' case to the Planning Committee.

8.0 Monitoring of Procedures

8.1 The Planning Committee's Convener and Vice-Convener's Sub-Committee shall meet on a regular basis to:-

a) review these procedures; and
b) consider any other matters of a general nature in relation to the handling of applications for certain types of development.

Attached to this explanatory note are:

Annex A : Procedures for Planning Applications which are to be considered by the Council's Planning Committee

Annex B : Protocol at Site Visits undertaken by the Council's Planning Committee

For clarification or further information relating to this explanatory note you may contact the Council's Planning Service on (01292) 616201, or write to:

Head of Planning and Transportation
3rd Floor, Burns House
Burns Statue Square
Ayr KA7 1UT

or e-mail via the customer feedback route on the Council's website at www.south-ayrshire.gov.uk

Ian McLarty
Head of Planning and Transportation
South Ayrshire Council April 2006

ANNEX A

PROCEDURES FOR PLANNING APPLICATIONS WHICH ARE TO BE CONSIDERED BY THE COUNCIL'S PLANNING COMMITTEE

A1. In those cases where a planning application is to be considered by the Planning Committee it will be subject to the hearings process under which the applicant, those persons who have submitted competent written objections, and supporters who have submitted written representations of their support, may address the Committee. To ensure fairness and consistency the hearings process is operated in accordance with the provisions of this Annex.

A2.The relevant parties shall be the applicant, objectors and supporters. Any of the parties may choose to be represented. The Councillor for the ward within which all or part of the site of the planning application lies shall be entitled to make a brief statement, provided that he/she is not a member of the Committee.

A3. Objectors must have submitted competent written objections in compliance with part 6 of the explanatory note to which this Annex is attached. The same provisions shall apply to supporters. Community councils may engage as objectors or supporters subject to the provisions of parts 6 and 7 of the explanatory note to which this Annex is attached.

Before the Committee Hearing

Parties will be sent notification of the date of the Committee hearing at least 14 days in advance and will be issued with a copy of the Depute Chief Executive and Director of Development, Safety and Regulation's report (including copies of objections and written representations of support). Only the relevant parties (see A2. and A3. above) will be so notified, and also sent a copy of these procedures.

At that time the parties will be advised that they may make a brief oral submission at the Committee hearing or make a further written submission to be received by the Council's Head of Planning and Transportation at least seven days prior to the Committee hearing: any such submission shall be copied by the Council to the other parties.

It is important that all parties understand that they can either address the Committee or make a further written submission, but they cannot do both.

If parties choose to make further written submission it must be restricted to amplification or development of their original submissions, and must not introduce new evidence.

A5.In some cases there may be a number of objectors/supporters with identical or similar lines of argument. Where this is apparent it would be beneficial to the efficient running of the hearing if such objectors/supporters could appoint from among their number a spokesperson(s) to make a submission on behalf of the group. Where a community council(s) is involved the provisions of paragraph 7.2 of the explanatory note to which this Annex is attached are relevant.

At the Committee Hearing

A6. The Members of the Planning Committee will have received in advance of the meeting a written report from the Depute Chief Executive and Director of Development, Safety and Regulation which will include copies of all of the competent written objections and written representations received by the Council. The Members will also have received copies of any further written submissions received by the Council within the terms set out at A4. above. At the commencement of the Committee's consideration of the planning application the Convener will ask all of the parties to come forward.

A7. The procedure at the hearing will be as follows:-

applicant to make statement in support of his/her application;
ii)supporter(s) to make statement;
iii) objector(s) to make statement;
iv) planning officer(s) to address the Committee;
v) applicant to sum up his/her case;
vi) Committee Members to discuss the application and, if necessary, to ask questions of the planning officer(s) and the parties.

If the local ward Councillor intends to address the Committee this will take place after the objectors have been heard.

A8. All parties, including the planning officers, will be required to limit their submissions to no more than 5 minutes. This limit may be extended, with the prior agreement of the Convener of the Committee, to up to 10 minutes where a group of two or more objectors/supporters have appointed a spokesperson or representative to make the submission on behalf of the group. To ensure fairness and consistency these time limits will be strictly enforced.

A9. Applicants (or their representatives) shall have 5 minutes in total to present their case, including any summing-up. This time limit will be strictly enforced such that applicants (or their representatives) who take their full allotted 5 minutes to present their case at the beginning of the hearing will not be permitted to sum-up.

A10. All parties must adhere to the following rules:-

i) oral submissions shall relate to the written submissions already lodged by the person making the oral submission;
ii) no new evidence shall be submitted in the form of new lines of argument, nor in the form of any maps, diagrams, photographs, physical objects or any other documentary material;
iii) no witnesses shall be called;
iv) the submission of clearly frivolous or vexatious points, and of plainly repetitious material will not be accepted;
v) abusive behaviour or the making of abusive personal comments about other parties will not be accepted.

A11.Once stages i) to vi) in paragraph A7. above have been completed the hearing is at an end, and no further submission or intervention by the applicant, objectors or supporters (or their representatives) will be permitted. The Members of the Committee will then consider the application, and may seek further advice from the planning officers and other Council officials who may be present.

A12. In normal course the Committee, having considered all of the written evidence and other submissions at the hearing, will proceed to decision forthwith. However, the Committee may agree to continue consideration of the application. In such circumstances the reason(s) for this will be given and minuted. One reason for continuation may be in order to allow the Committee to visit the application site. In normal course the site visit shall take the form of a meeting of the Planning
Committee will full powers to take a decision. If there are practical difficulties in completing the decision-making on site, the Committee may decide to reconvene at the County Buildings. Unless in exceptional circumstances and for very specific reasons the Committee agrees to go into private session to consider one or more aspects for an application, all of the discussion shall be taken in public and the parties shall be entitled to be present. The protocol for site visits forms Annex B to this explanatory note.

The decision of the Planning Committee shall be notified in writing to the parties, normally within 5 working days.

ANNEX B

PROTOCOL AT SITE VISITS UNDERTAKEN BY THE PLANNING COMMITTEE

The Site Visit

B1.The purpose of the site visit is to allow the members of the Committee present at the hearing to attend the site and to view the location of the proposed development. When the decision is being taken to hold a site visit, the reason for the site visit shall be given and minuted, and the proposed date for the site visit will normally be announced.

B2.he parties shall be entitled to be present. However, no further submissions will be heard from the parties and parties must check with the Planning Service, Burns House, tel. (01292) 616201 as to the anticipated timing of the visit on the date set.

B3.Members may put questions for clarification to the officers of the Council and to the relevant parties.

B4.In normal course, the site visit shall take the form of a meeting of the Planning Committee reconvening on site, with full powers to take a decision. If, exceptionally, there may be practical difficulties in completing the decision-making on site, the Committee (either at the hearing or on site) may decide that there be a re-convened meeting at the County Buildings, in which case the additional procedure set out below shall apply.

Re-convened Meeting

B5.When it is decided to hold a re-convened meeting at County Buildings, the consideration of the planning application will normally resume at the first scheduled meeting (meetings are generally held on a 4-weekly cycle) following the site visit.

B6.Parties will have been advised at the hearing or at the site visit of the date and time of the re-convened meeting and shall be entitled to be present. No further submissions shall be taken.

B7. Only those Members who were present at the hearing and at the site visit will be entitled to participate in the determination of the planning application.

B8. The Committee will proceed to determine the application at the re-convened meeting, following the normal voting procedures, if appropriate unless, exceptionally, another continuation

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Procedures For The Handling Of Planning Applications