Norton St Philip Parish Council

   The Parish Council’s role

   How to apply for planning permission

   Contact details for Mendip District Council Planning Department

The parish council’s role

All planning applications that are sent to Mendip District Council are copied to the Parish Council for comment. When the Parish Council receives a planning application, it is copied to the planning committee who meet to discuss it, often on the site of the proposal (with the owner's permission). The application is placed on the next Parish Council meeting agenda and the planning committee brings its recommendations to the meeting, where it is discussed further, if necessary, and a response voted on. Sometimes, if the planning application is contentious, an open forum is held before the meeting for parishioners to state their opinions.

Parish councillors are asked to indicate on a form whether they 'Object' to the application or have 'No objection'. They can give their reasons, if they wish, under a heading of 'Comments'.

This is then sent to Mendip District Council, which takes the Parish Council's views into account when deciding whether or not to pass a planning application, or whether to pass it with conditions imposed.

The Parish Council is duly informed of whether or not the planning application has been successful.

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How to apply for planning permission

Contact Mendip District Council (contact details below) for a planning application form. Take care to complete these fully, since not doing so will cause delay. Return the forms with FIVE copies of your plans. Plans must be to scale, show existing and new work, and have metric dimensions.

A fee is normally charged, which must be paid in full when you submit your application. Contact the planning information office for details of fees. If an application is refused, it is usually possible for an application for a second similar proposal to be made free of charge, if certain conditions are met.

What Mendip District Council do with your application

When the planning office receive your application, an administrator checks that the forms have been properly completed, that the drawings are adequate and that the correct fee has been paid. If all is in order, your application is registered on the computer and assigned to a planning officer for assessment – this planning officer will deal with the application all the way through the process.

Then there is a consulatation period where anybody can comment on the proposal. A site notice is always posted where it can be clearly seen by the public, and the application may also be advertised in the local press. It is at this point that the Parish Council gets sent a copy of the proposal, as will neighbours and other interested parties.

The planning officer will usually visit the site to get a full picture of the proposal and he or she will write a report on the application, and make a recommendation that it should be given permission or refused. If the proposal is not acceptable, it may be possible to negotiate a solution.

The recommendation is then taken to, in our case, the Frome Area Board, where it may further be discussed if there are potential problems.

You will hear about the success or otherwise of your planning application within three days of the date of the decision. Enquiries may be made by phone the day after a planning meeting.

You can appeal against the decision if you wish.

For more detailed information on the planning process at Mendip District Council, visit their Web site by clicking here.

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Contact details

Planning Department
Mendip District Council
Cannards Grave Road
Shepton Mallet
BA4 5BT

Telephone: 01749 341550 or 341551
e-mail: devcontrol@mendip.gov.uk