Agenda and minutes

There were no items on the agenda to warrant exclusion of the press and public.

There were no matters of urgency for consideration.

There were no Declarations of Interest to report.

Resolved:- That the minutes of the previous meeting of the Planning Regulatory Board held on Thursday, 10^th August, 2023, be approved as a correct record of the meeting.

There were no site visits or deferments recommended.

Resolved:-  (1)  That, on the development proposals now considered, the requisite notices be issued and be made available on the Council’s website and that the time limits specified in Sections 91 and 92 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 apply.

In accordance with the right to speak procedure the following people attended the meeting and spoke about the application below:-

-               Change of use to Childrens Care Home at 6 Hunger Hill Road Whiston for WLKA Properties (RB2023/0938)

Mr. W. Kashangura (Applicant)

Ms. L. C. Gregory (Objector)

Mr. T. Abell (Objector)

Ms. C. Richardson (Objector)

Ms. S. Badger (Objector)

(2)  That application RB2023/0938 be granted for the reasons adopted by Members at the meeting and subject to the relevant conditions listed in the submitted report and subject to an additional condition relating to the upgrading of the driveway surface to ensure there was adequate off road parking at all times.  The wording of the additional condition to the agreed with the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Planning Board.

The following update information was provided:-

(a)        Planning Applications By Type

An overview was provided on the number of planning applications by type over the last few years to graphically show any variations or trends for the numbers of applications submitted.  The Covid-19 pandemic had skewed the figures slightly as this fell in the middle of the five years depicted.

Whilst only six month data was available for 2023, a rough estimate for the year was also provided.

The information shared did indicate a downward trend in the numbers of applications submitted not only in Rotherham, but nationally and reflective of the number of applications being submitted to the Planning Board for consideration.

Discussion ensued on the data and whilst specific development numbers could not be provided, consideration would be given to including this in some form in the future.

The Planning Board voiced their appreciation to the Planning Department’s staff for the concise and informative presentations and reports prepared for the Planning Board and the professional manner these were presented.

Rotherham’s Planning Department were a small team and having won the best performing Planning Authority in the country a few years ago, they still continued to achieve 100% of all applications on time.  It was also noted that fees and charges in relation to Planning were set nationally and there was no jurisdiction locally for this to change.

In welcoming the data as submitted the Planning Board asked that with any future updates comparative data with neighbouring authorities be included.

(b)        Policy Changes to the NPPF and Planning Practice Guidance

An update was provided on the paragraph changes made more recently.

One area of particular note was the flexibility to address detail for onshore wind farms and applications to extend the time life.

Resolved:-  That the updates be received and the contents noted.

Resolved:-  That the next meeting of the Planning Board take place on Thursday, 12^th October, 2023 at 9.00 a.m. at Rotherham Town Hall.