Pre-Application Advice & Developer Contributions

The Council is undertaking a modernisation and enhancement programme that impacts upon the way it delivers its Development Control service. Initiatives are being progressed to improve the quality of the advice given and decisions made together with the effectiveness with which these are delivered.

One of these initiatives is seeking to improve the speed and effectiveness of the advice given to potential applicants at pre application stage. The Council is keen to work with potential applicants early in the process of the formulation of development proposals. In this way the Council hopes to be able to provide helpful and timely advice as to the appropriateness or otherwise of schemes. This should help to avoid the submission of unrealistic proposals and is one of the main ways that the Council is hoping to raise the standard in terms of application submissions and ultimately development built. It should also help to avoid unnecessary costs for potential developers as subsequent application costs can be minimised.

In order to deliver this service successfully the Council needs to recover its costs as the provision of pre application advice is not provided for within the planning fee. Such costs would otherwise fall on the council tax payer. The Council from 10 July 2006 started operating a system of charging under the Local Government act 2003 as set out in the attached documents. The fees for this service were reviewed on 1 April 2007. The revised fees are attached. The Council may review the fees each year.