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View or comment on a planning application

Due to works by our software provider, access will be unavailable for users of our planning application website during 10 to 11 December 2024.  Apologies for any inconvenience.

Anyone can make comments about any planning application. You do not have to be notified directly.

By using our planning application website, you agree to the Council's disclaimer, together with the Council's disclaimer for viewing planning applications. There are more details about how we use your data on our planning privacy notice.

Planning applications are open to the public and press. Any comments sent to us whether by letter or online will have to be made available for public inspection and published on our website to comply with the Local Government (Access to Information) Act 1985. For this reason, your comments cannot be treated as confidential.  Please ensure that you only provide information that you would be content to be made available to others in this way.  You must also ensure that you have read the below guidance notes before you send any comments to us.

Note: We are obliged to maintain a public register of Planning Applications.  Any information that is publicly available on our website could be used by individuals or organisations for their own purposes. The council is not responsible for how those individuals or organisations use data that is in the public arena.

How to comment on a planning application

You should submit your comments to us within 21 days of the date of a notification letter, site notice or press advertisement. After this time you can still submit the comment if permission is yet to be decided, but the Council can make its decision at any time after the 21 day notification period has expired.

You can submit comments on a planning application by using our planning applications website or letter to the District Council. Comments are not accepted via social media as we cannot always adequately identify the person submitting comments, or where they live, to attach appropriate weight to any issues raised.

Comments on the planning register must not:

  • Contain any personal names, please use words such as applicant, neighbour, etc.
  • Contain any personal information such as you're living on your own, you're on holiday next week, number of years you have lived at address etc.
  • Contain any information relating to medical data for yourself or others; this is unlawful for us to process
  • Contain any material which is defamatory of any person or business
  • Contain any material which is obscene, offensive, hateful or inflammatory
  • Promote sexually explicit material
  • Promote violence
  • Promote discrimination based on race, sex, religion, nationality, disability, sexuality orientation, or age
  • Infringe any copyright, database right or trademark of any other person
  • Be likely to deceive any person
  • Be made in breach of any legal duty owed to a third party, such as a contractual duty or a duty of confidence
  • Promote any illegal activity
  • Be threatening, abusive or invade another's privacy, or cause annoyance, inconvenience or needless anxiety
  • Be likely to harass, embarrass, alarm or annoy any other person
  • Be used to impersonate anyone, or to misrepresent your identity or affiliation with anyone
  • Give the impression that they emanate from us, if this is not the case, or;
  • Advocate, promote or assist any unlawful act such as (by way of example only), copyright infringement or computer misuse.

If comments are offensive, inflammatory or libellous they won't be considered by the Case Officer.  This is because publishing a defamatory statement may constitute a libel.  Your comment will be returned to you and removed from our software/database and case file and you will be provided with an opportunity to revise them.

Anonymous comments.

Anonymous comments will not be considered by the Case Officer.  Neither will comments which do not have the address of the respondent.  Where possible, we will write to request your name and address.  Names and addresses are required so that comments to an application can be attributed to the author and we can understand the concerns raised in relation to where you live/work.

What to include in your comments

When you comment on a planning application, the main thing to remember is that we can only take planning related matters into account when making a decision. This applies to planning applications across the UK.

Planning matters normally relate to issues outlined in current national planning policies and in the development plan for the area.

Other examples of planning matters include:

  • loss of privacy
  • overshadowing
  • overbearing impact
  • road safety
  • effect on the character of the area
  • effect on the trees or the landscape 

Examples of non-planning matters include:

  • loss of value of property
  • personal dislike of the applicant
  • that a lot of people have objected
  • that the work was started without planning permission
  • land ownership, boundary disputes or matters referring to legal covenants
  • loss of private view
  • matters covered by other legislation (such as licences or building regulations)

These are not exhaustive lists.

What information will be removed

To ensure that we are able to demonstrate a fair and transparent process, the following information will be removed from any comments we receive from interested third parties and will not be published online or shared:

Appeal being considered by the Planning Inspectorate

In the event of an appeal being considered by the Planning Inspectorate, we will forward redacted copies of all comments made and accepted, to the Planning Inspectorate as part of the appeals process.  For a householder or minor commercial applications, in the event of an appeal that proceeds by way of the expedited procedure, comments made about the application will be sent to the Secretary of State. There will be no opportunity to make further comments.

Providing feedback on the planning service

Have you used our online planning service or contacted us about a planning matter? We’re always keen to hear about your experiences to make sure we’re providing the best services we can. More information can be found on our planning feedback page.