South Derbyshire District Council - Public speaking at the development control committee

Members of the public may be able to give views and comments about a planning application at the relevant Development Control Committee meeting.

What are Development Control Committee Meetings ?

Development Control Committee meetings are held to consider planning applications which are not decided by planning officers. The Committee considers applications in relation to planning policy, the representations received from members of the public, consultation responses and the recommendations of the planning officer.

Where are the meetings held ?

The meetings are normally held every three weeks on a Tuesday evening at 6pm in the Council Chamber at the offices of South Derbyshire District Council in Swadlincote. How to find us. The layout of the Council Chamber is shown in the diagram (right).

Can I speak at meetings ?

Anyone wishing to speak at the committee may be able to do so, subject to the procedure set out in this guidance. Only those members of the public who have already submitted a written representation will be allowed to speak.

When people speak about an application, their comments are considered in the light of planning policy along with other relevant information, including any written representations.

Who can speak ?

Two people are able to speak on an application. One person is allowed to speak on behalf of any objectors and one person
may speak in support of the application. If more than one person wishes to speak for or against the same application, they should choose a representative to speak on behalf of everyone. The contact details of the first person to register will be passed on to others so that they can nominate a representative. If no representative is chosen, the first person to ask to speak will be given the opportunity.

How do I arrange to speak ?

If you wish to speak about an application that is being considered by the Committee, you must register by telephone during office hours with the Democratic Services Unit. Registration is from 10am on the Tuesday seven days prior to the meeting until 5pm on the day before the meeting (normally Monday).

Office hours are 8.45am. until 5pm on Monday to Thursday and 8.45am until 4.30pm on Friday. The contact details are at the end of this leaflet.

How long can I speak for ?

The chosen person will be able to speak for three minutes. The chair will advise you when you have 30 seconds left. After three minutes you will be asked to stop speaking and you will not be able to address the committee after this time.

What can I speak about ?

You should state your views and comments. You should not ask questions of other speakers or the committee. The committee is only able to consider planning issues. Therefore, you should limit yourself to comments on these issues. Examples might include the following:

The suitability of the site for this particular development
The design, appearance and layout of the proposal
Any loss of light or privacy
Any noise, disturbance or smell
Highway safety or traffic
The effect on the character or amenity of an area or
Whether the development is consistent with the council’s planning policy and government guidance.

You should avoid speaking about matters that are not planning issues, such as the
following:

Matters covered by other laws (e.g. alcohol licences or health and safety laws)
Private property rights (e.g. boundary or access disputes)
Personal remarks (e.g. the applicant’s morals or motives)
The effect on the value of property
The effect on competition for other businesses
Possible future development; and
Loss of views over other people’s land.

You should not make statements that are personal or defamatory. You should not be abusive or interrupt other speakers or Members of the Committee. You will not be able to present documents or photographs at the meeting. If you wish, you may submit these to the council before the meeting. If you wish to check about what you want to say, you should contact the relevant planning officer for the application.

What happens at the meetings ?

The agenda for the meeting will list the applications to be considered. For each application, there is normally a short presentation by the planning officer. After the presentation, the Chair will announce whether there are any speakers. He will then invite the objector or representative of the objectors to come to the front of the room. The objector will then be able to make their presentation.

Once they have finished speaking, the objector will return to the public seats at the rear of the chamber. They will not be able to ask any questions and the committee will not ask questions of them.

The chair will then invite the applicant, their representative or supporter to come to the front of the room. The applicant will then be able to make their presentation. Once they have finished speaking, the applicant will return to the public seats at the rear of the chamber.

They will not be able to ask any questions and the committee will not ask questions of them. The committee will then discuss the application. If there is a debate, the chair will ask for comments from Members of the Committee (for example, whether they wish to express support for granting permission or express a desire to refuse permission).

Applicants, objectors and members of the public cannot make any comments during this discussion. Normally the Committee will vote on a motion moved by a Committee Member to approve, refuse or defer consideration of the application. The decision will be one of the following:

To approve the application subject to conditions
To refuse the application for specific reasons
To defer consideration to allow additional information to be collected or negotiations to be carried out
To defer consideration to allow the committee to visit the application site (for example, where the committee considers that viewing the site would help them to reach a decision); or
To delegate the final decision to the planning officer (for example, where a legal agreement or amended plans are required before the application can be decided).

The chairman will announce the decision after consideration of each application

Contact details

For further information, or to register to speak about an application, please contact us at:

Democratic Services
South Derbyshire District Council
Civic Offices
Civic Way
Swadlincote
Derbyshire DE11 0AH

Tel: 01283 595848
Fax : 01283 228711

Development Control Committee information