Planning in the new Northumberland
by Robin Dower
The reorganisation of Local Government in Northumberland seems to have happened without fanfare and drama except perhaps for tired staff at District and County offices who have been responsible for ensuring the transition was smoothly effected. It is too early to assess the operational consequences of reorganisation but at least in Planning we have a yardstick by which to measure the performance of the new Directorate of Place.
At a seminar in January senior Planning Officers in the Directorate set out the structure of the new County Planning service and presented a Development Management Charter outlining the standards to be expected from it.
The Central Planning team at County Hall will be responsible for Planning Strategy, the Spatial Framework and Sustainable Development Strategy. County Hall will also be responsible for the provision of specialist services like Conservation and Archaeology and for liaison with other policy making agencies. Existing policy frameworks inherited from the old County and Districts will remain valid over the transition but will be reinterpreted as soon as possible in new Core Strategy areas such as Minerals and Waste, Transport and Affordable Housing.
Development Management will be delivered through Area Offices – North Northumberland at Alnwick, West at Hexham and South-East Northumberland at Morpeth. The Development Management Charter sets out an agenda to enhance the service by:
- Clarifying Planning Policy framework.
- Developing pre-application contacts aimed at removing doubt in the process by offering objective advice and providing access to the specialist services such as Archaeology and Conservation.
- Simplifying application procedures – a great advantage having one authority.
- Committing to wider consultation with neighbours, the community and the voluntary sector (which is where the Society comes in).
- Making decisions at an appropriate level, whether by officers delegated to do so or by Area Panels or full Central Committee.
- Monitoring permissions and reviewing the effects of development permitted.
This is a new aspect of the service of considerable
interest, if the County has the
resources to effect it. The aim appears
to be to learn what impact an approved
development has on the environment
and local community after it has been
constructed and is in use. One might
say “a bit too late”, but it would be more
charitable to see it as a way of listening
and learning and perhaps refining the
decision-making process for the future.
Not a bad aim, really!
City and County
May 2009
