Planners are top performing

Our planning department continues to be recognised as one of the top performing authorities in the country by the Department of Communities and Local Government.

Three Rivers came fourth in the country for being a fast decision-maker for major planning applications over the past two years. The Council dealt with 35 out of 37 (94.6%) within the statutory 13 weeks including the completion of Section 106 Agreements.

The high results reflect the success of the Council’s formal pre-application advice scheme, which was launched in April 2011. The scheme enables developers to formally ask for advice on planning applications at an early stage and can flag up any potential concerns or issues with a scheme. A number of major applications that the Council receives will have gone through the pre-application process.

Three Rivers' head of regulatory services, Rebecca Emmett, said:

“Whilst speed is only one indicator, it does give reassurances to applicants that the Council will deal with applications promptly. The high results have been achieved through the hard work of a highly skilled and experienced team of professional planning officers."  

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