To receive any announcements from the Chairman.

The Chairman said that Mr Jonathan Barrett the Head of Planning Services would shortly be leaving the Council to take up a new post and thanked him for all the help and courtesy he had shown to members during the past few years.

The Head of Planning Services provided the Committee with the following information about his department:-

Building control

Building control had received 467 submissions and Building Notices in 2006. There were 82 submissions awaiting a decision, 30 of which were waiting for further information form the agent/applicant. 97.54% of submissions had a decision within the statutory time period and the Building control Action Plan had a target of 100%. 

The Section was 2 surveyors below establishment with interviews taking place shortly.

Conservation Section

The Section dealt with a range of activities with much of its staff time devoted to advising Development Control and Forward Planning officers. Other key tasks include maintaining the Sites and Monuments Record, operating the Historic Building Grant Scheme, Conservation Area designation and appraisal, regulatory matters in relation to trees and hedgerows, and curatorial work in relation to archaeology. The section also sought funding for a range of environmental and related community projects; environmental auditing and monitoring work, and strategic partnership activities.  It indirectly contributed to a new range of Best Value Indicators and was directly responsibility for BV219. This related to Conservation Areas and a report would be submitted to the next Planning Committee about it. There was also a Corporate Plan Indicator about land the Council owned or was responsible for and managed for biodiversity, which the section leads upon through the Biodiversity Partnership Office.  There were a number of staff changes within the Historic Buildings Team, the Landscape Team and the Archaeology Team.

Forward Planning

The main matters being dealt with the Team were:

·         UDP Inspectors report is expected to be received shortly and will enable the  completion of the last stages of the UDP process – Modifications will be made during the period March 2006 – Sep 2007;

·         Staff contributing to the partial review of the Regional Strategy Statement;

·         First major element of the Local Development Framework - the Statement of Community Involvement is due for submission to Government. in the summer;

·         Core strategy will follow.

·         Several SDP documents underway including for various sites (e.g. the ones at Committee) and for planning obligations and the ESG.

·         Overall the LDF timetable set out in the LDS scheme is being delivered.

·         BVPI 106 on pdl = 72% 04/5 comfortably exceeding national (60%) and regional (68%) targets.

·         Vacancies – position improving – just the one vacant Senior Planning Officer post and half a senior maternity cover.

Development Control

The current BV109 position is:

                        Target                                      April 05 – Feb 06

Majors                60%                                                     59%

Minors                65%                                                     72%

Others                80%                                                     84%

There is continuing improvement in meeting targets but these are affected by the deferral of applications at the Area Sub-Committee meetings.

BV 204 – Appeals: Despite some recent reversals on appeal, overall the appeal statistics were healthy. Only 26% of appeals against refusals have been upheld in 2005/06 so far.

The DC Team currently has vacancies for the Minerals & Waste Team Leader and a trainee Planning Officer.

The DC service is progressing with e-enabling the service. Planning application forms and plans war on the Internet and the GIS project was making  steady progress.

The challenge ahead is to maintain the BVPI improvements without sacrificing quality and pursuing the modernisation agenda of the government and the Council. Further development of Section 106 policies and practice was a significant element of this and was necessary to achieve key (UDP & LTP) policy objectives.