Consultations, recommendations, committee meeting, voting, decisions and possible appeals
Consultation remains open For as long as the planning portal allows it, there is still the opportunity to comment. The case will remain open until all the Statutory Consultees required to comment have done so. The level of public interest in the site is important and your comment, whatever it is (traffic/number of houses/flooding/road safety etc), shows the Councillors how important it is that they make a good decision (see more below). So, if you thought you had missed your chance to say something - you haven't!
Persimmon may review their plans again Last year, the consultation stayed open for weeks - well into the summer. As we daily checked the agendas for the Planning Committee meetings for mention of Bassetts Farm, Persimmon decided to rework their application and informed us that they were going to submit a new plan. The plan that everyone fought last year never made it to Committee. We don't know what's going to happen this time. We continue to challenge the representations of Persimmon and to draw Planning Officers' attention to the many elements of the scheme that don't conform to policy. It is possible that this may again result in a rethink. We believe it should, given the lack of observance of the HNP alone. Greg Clark, MP, believes so too.
Planning Team makes a recommendation The Planning Officers, each with a different remit, are looking at the application and commenting on what they see to either be acceptable according to policy, or needing attention. They also need to consider the comments of Statutory Consultees - ie the government bodies responsible for the different elements of public service needed by or likely to be affected by the plan - eg. road safety, policing, public rights of way, emergency access, ecology, flood water, amenity of the village etc etc. The Horsmonden Parish Council is one such Statutory Consultee and they have already submitted a robust objection to the plan - not least because it fails to observe the provisions of the HNP in a number of areas. The Planning Officers will also review the comments submitted by the public - you, me, us. This is why it's important to comment on the plan in the right place. Just talking to your neighbour or worrying on Facebook won't make a difference. A good deal of public interest shown on the planning application will hold some weight. Please share your comments with the Planning Officers if you still haven't. In the meanwhile, the BFF has been contesting inaccuracies in the published statements of the Planning Officers. Their statements - and our rebuttals - are all available to see online on the planning portal. When each of the Planning Officers has appraised their area, the Principal Planning Officer will decide whether the application is right to be recommended for approval or whether refusal is advised, and will issue his stance.
Planning application goes to Committee After the Principal Planning Officer makes his recommendation publicly, the application will go to Committee. This can be in as little as five days. The Planning Commitee is made up of elected Borough Councillors who represent their constituents. The meeting, to be held at Tunbridge Wells Town Hall, will comprise representations to the Committee by the Planning Team, usually the developer (Persimmon in this case), and by any members of the public who have requested to speak. The meeting is open to the public and a good show of interest is difficult for Borough Councillors to overlook. For that reason, we hope you will be able to attend the meeting once we know when it is. BFF will keep you posted on anything we find out. Following discussion among the Councillors, a vote is taken and the application is either approved or denied by majority. The BFF is currently finalising a letter to Councillors which we plan to send ahead of any meeting - just as we did this last year. We will share our draft with you here shortly for any comments you'd like us to consider.
The applicant can appeal if the decision is refusal In UK Planning Law, the applicant (Persimmon) has the right to appeal the decision made by the Planning Committee if the plan is refused and Persimmon believes the decision to be unreasonable. We (the public) can comment on an appeal if this happens. We will keep you up-to-date with how this works should it happen.
Our only recourse is Judicial Review In contrast to the rights of the applicant if we, the public, want to challenge the decision made the only way to do so is by Judicial Review. Judicial Review is an option only available if it is believed that the decision made to approve the plan was incorrect in law. Such an appeal can be successful if a judge decides in your favour, but it is costly as it requires legal advice and representation, and therefore only worth undertaking with a good degree of confidence at success.
What to do now Make your comments official Tell your neighbours Watch this space for news about the Committee meeting Attend the Committee meeting when it comes up Use your voice in the Borough Elections, 2 May (more info here) Want to comment on the Local Plan? Click here
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