Issue - meetings

(1)               That, subject to (3) below, the provision of “free” informal written advice as to whether or not planning permission is required for development proposals, be discontinued;

(2)               That, subject to (3) below, the introduction of charging of fees for pre-application advice, as set out in the report be approved;

(3)               That, solely in relation to householder development, the provision of one half-hour meeting per case be allowed without charge, but a charge be levied in the event of any further meeting or if written confirmation of the advice given is sought; and

(4)               That the Head of Planning and Development be requested to report back after six months on the implementation of these changes, the feedback received and the impact of them.

Councillor Boden, portfolio holder for Regeneration, Planning and Town Centres, introduced a report giving Cabinet the opportunity to decide whether or not the council should agree to introduce charging for planning advice, and the means by which this could be done.

The introduction of charges for pre-application advice was permitted under Section 93 of Local Government Act and a number of local authorities had already introduced charges for this purpose.  Introduction of charges for pre- application planning advice would present an opportunity to recoup some of the costs associated with undertaking pre-application discussions with potential applicants for planning permission, and to offset some of the costs of the planning process.  The report has been prepared in the context of a significant reduction in planning fee income, and a study, financed by the West Midlands Improvement and Efficiency Project, commissioned from the accountancy firm Deloitte, comparing the council’s fees and charges with those made by a range of other local authorities.  This work had identified some activities where no charge was currently made but could be, and the report to Cabinet on 16 January 2013 on the Scale of Fees and Charges had identified charging for pre-application advice as feasible for implementation in 2013/14, and advised that a report on this would be submitted to this meeting.

The introduction of charges had been supported by the Planning Committee at its meeting the previous evening.

A discussion ensued on the merits of the introduction of a charge in respect of householder development, as it was considered that a complete absence of advice without charge could potentially be detrimental to customers.

Resolved:

(1)               That, subject to (3) below, the provision of “free” informal written advice as to whether or not planning permission is required for development proposals, be discontinued;

(2)               That, subject to (3) below, the introduction of charging of fees for pre-application advice, as set out in the report be approved;

(3)               That, solely in relation to householder development, the provision of one half-hour meeting per case be allowed without charge, but a charge be levied in the event of any further meeting or if written confirmation of the advice given is sought; and

(4)               That the Head of Planning and Development be requested to report back after six months on the implementation of these changes, the feedback received and the impact of them.