Once an application has been made
We receive more than 5000 applications a year. The majority
of these applications will be available to view on the Council's
website. We are also working towards providing applicants with the
ability to keep up to date with the progress of their application
through the Council's website. The following provides information
on the process of considering and determining a planning
application.
Acknowledging an application
Every application submitted to the Royal Borough will be
registered and acknowledged by our Planning Registration Team. If
you have provided an email address you will receive your
acknowledgement electronically. In addition, you will be contacted
throughout the process of your application by electronic means;
this includes the receipt of your decision notice.
Consultation on planning applications
Most planning applications are subject to some form of public
consultation. The extent of public consultation depends on the type
and scale of the application. The document below outlines our
consultation practices.
Please note that you do not need to be formally consulted on an
application to submit comments on a proposal. If you wish to be
kept informed of applications in your area, or in an area that is
of interest to you, you are advised to subscribe to the
Council's MyRBKC email alert facility.
This facility allows you to register with the service and be
informed, by email, of applications that are submitted that meet
your chosen criteria. Please click on the link below to be
directed to the MyRBKC facility.
If you have not been consulted on a proposal that is currently
taking place, it could be that planning permission is not required.
There are certain works that do not need planning permission and as
such, they are not subject to public consultation. However, on
occasion people do begin building works, or change the use of a
property without the correct planning consents in place. In these
circumstances our Enforcement Team would investigate. Please
consult our Enforcement page for further information and
advice.
Viewing and commenting on an application
We publish the majority of planning applications on our website.
On occasion, if it is deemed a security risk to publish plans of a
building, we may restrict viewing of these documents on the
website. This normally only affects embassies, royal buildings and
banks.
If you do not have access to the internet, you can view the
plans electronically on the ground floor of the Town Hall during
normal opening hours. No appointment is necessary as we operate a
self-service system. A planning officer will be available should
you have any questions regarding the plans.
If you have received notification of a planning application
near to you and wish to register your comments, you
should firstly consider the proposal and ensure that you fully
understand what is being proposed.
Once you have viewed the plans and associated documents, we
encourage you to speak to the applicant or their representative. If
you approach them and explain any concerns, either in person or in
writing, they may be willing to address these issues and amend
their proposal to overcome your concerns. If having spoken to the
applicant, you still wish to comment on a planning application you
must provide your comments in writing. We encourage you
to use the comments form on our website. You may also send your
comments by email to planning@rbkc.gov.uk or by post
to the Town Hall address. Please include the reference
number of the application and your full postal
address.
We normally allow three weeks for comments on planning
applications. Please submit your comments to the Council
within the set timescales to ensure that your comments are taken
into consideration. We aim to make decisions on applications soon
after the close of the consultation period so comments received
after the given period may not be taken into consideration when
determining the application. The dates for the consultation period
will be clearly advertised on any relevant documentation. You can
also check this for each application on the Council’s website.
Sometimes applicants will withdraw an application and resubmit a
similar scheme. Comments you may have made on the first application
will not be routinely carried over to the new application as each
application is considered on its own merits. If you still have
concerns about the resubmission, please ensure you comment on the
new scheme.
It is important that third parties express their views on an
application but unfortunately, some of your concerns may not be
issues we can consider when determining an application as they are
not “material planning considerations”. Issues we can and cannot
take into consideration are listed below. This list is not
exhaustive and should be used as a guide only.
Material Planning Considerations (issues we can consider)
- loss of light
- loss of privacy/increase in overlooking
- design/appearance of a development
- increase in smells (from a proposed restaurant for
example)
- noise from equipment that forms part of the development (air
conditioning units or extractor flues for example)
Non Material Planning Considerations (issues we cannot
consider)
- loss of property value
- disruption and disturbance from building work
- land ownership or issues affecting the party wall (these are
dealt with under separate legislation). For further advice please
see other possible approvals
Contacting the Planning Officer
Each application is allocated to a Planning Officer. They are
also known as the case officer. This officer will oversee the
application; coordinating all the relevant consultations, site
visits, negotiations, reviewing planning policies and they
will ultimately make a recommendation on the proposal to the
Executive Director for Planning and Borough Development.
Due to increasing workload, case officers are extremely busy and
therefore are not available to discuss an application on a drop-in
basis. In order to deal with enquiries on applications, we have a
dedicated team of trained advisers who can inform you of general
processes and give you updates on applications. Please call
PlanningLine on 020 7361 3012.
Site Visits
The case officer will make a visit to each application site
prior to making a recommendation on the proposal. In some instances
they will have to make an appointment with the applicant or their
representative to access the site. However, if the application site
is visible from a public area the case officer will normally view
without first making an appointment.
If the case officer does need access to the site, they will
contact the applicant or their agent to arrange a mutually suitable
date and time. Case officers endeavour to arrange site visits early
in the determination process.
The case officer will look at the site and spend time
considering the proposal and how it may affect the surrounding
area. In most cases they will take photographs. Due to the often
complex issues in planning it is not always possible to give a
definitive answer to the acceptability of a proposal during the
site visit. The Officer may wish to discuss the proposal with
other council departments or senior officers.
Occasionally an officer may wish to view a site from
neighbouring properties to assess the impact a proposal may have on
its surroundings. If this is considered necessary, the case officer
will contact the occupiers of the property and make the appropriate
arrangements.
Case officers do receive requests from neighbours to view the
site from their property. Please be aware that case officers will
only agree to these requests if they believe they have not fully
understood the proposal from visiting the application site. They
will not visit neighbouring sites as a matter of routine.
Revisions to planning applications prior to determination
In some circumstances an application as submitted may not be
acceptable. However with some minor adjustments to the proposed
plans an approval of permission would be acceptable. In this
instance the Planning Officer may request amendments, often known
as revisions, to the proposed plans. As an applicant you will be
given a set time period in which to provide amended drawings. Due
to tight timescales set for the determination of applications, we
would request that you submit amended drawings within the timescale
given by your case officer otherwise we may have to refuse the
application. If substantial amendments are required to make a
scheme acceptable then we will not request amendments, but will
offer you the opportunity to withdraw the application if you do not
wish for it to be refused.
As an interested party you may be advised that amended drawings
have been received and given a further time period in which to
comment on the revised proposals. Please note that we do not
consult upon amended drawings as a matter of course; the decision
to consult would be for the case officer to make based upon
individual circumstances.
If you are consulted on a revised application, please
ensure you submit any comments to the council within the timescale
given.
Delegated Powers and the Planning Applications Committee
The Planning Applications Committee is a public meeting made up
of elected Councillors who meet regularly to decide whether certain
planning applications should be approved or refused. Most planning
applications can be determined by the Executive Director using his
delegated powers. However, a small percentage cannot and must be
presented to the Planning Applications Committee for them to
consider the Officer's recommendations and decide whether the
proposed development is acceptable or not.
Most applications start life as delegated cases. Through the
consideration of the issues certain applications must transfer from
being delegated cases to being committee cases. The Committee
decides those applications where:
- there have been 3 or more objections and the Executive Director
for Planning and Borough Development is recommending that planning
permission should be granted
- in most cases where a section 106 agreement is proposed
- an elected Member has requested that the application be
considered by Committee
- the Executive Director for Planning and Borough Development has
decided that the application should be considered by the
Committee
- an application is contrary to the Council’s planning policies
and the Executive Director’s recommendation is to grant
permission
Please see the Planning Committee page for further information
and meeting dates.