Decision Maker: Officer Delegated Decision
Decision status: Recommendations Approved
Is Key decision?: No
Is subject to call in?: No
Reason
for the decision
Neighbourhood
Area designation
Dorset
Council has received a neighbourhood area application (Appendix A) from Church
Knowle Parish Council.
The
Neighbourhood Planning (General) Regulations 2012 (as amended) state under
regulation 5A that:
(1) …where─
(a) a local planning authority receives an area
application from a parish council;
(b) the area specified in the application
consists of the whole of the parish council’s area; and
(c) if any part of the specified area is part of
a neighbourhood area, none of that neighbourhood area extends outside the
parish council’s area.
(2) The local planning authority must
exercise their powers under section 61G of the 1990 Act to designate the
specified area as a neighbourhood area.
At
the same time regulation 5A paragraph (3) outlines that under the circumstances
set out in paragraph (1), above, there is no requirement for a local planning
authority to consult on the proposed neighbourhood area.
These
provisions are summarised in Paragraph 032 (Reference ID: 41-032-20170728) of
the neighbourhood planning section of the national Planning Practice Guidance
(PPG). This states:
‘Where
a parish council applies for the whole of the area of the parish to be
designated as a neighbourhood area, the local planning authority must designate
the whole of the area applied for. This includes where a parish applies to
extend its existing neighbourhood area to its parish boundary. Exceptions to
this are where the area applied for:
· has already been designated as a
neighbourhood area which extends beyond the parish boundary; or
· forms part of another application
that has not yet been determined.’
Church
Knowle Parish Council has applied to have the whole of its parish area
designated as a neighbourhood area. The area specified in the application does
not extend beyond the Church Knowle parish boundary and does not overlap with
other neighbourhood areas already designated or applied for and awaiting
determination.
Regulation
5A of the Neighbourhood Planning (General) Regulations 2012 (as amended)
therefore applies to the application received from Church Knowle Parish
Council. To this end there is no requirement to consult on the application and
Dorset Council must exercise its powers under section 61G of the Town and
Country Planning Act 1990 to designate the Church Knowle parish area as a ‘neighbourhood
area’.
Alternative
options considered and rejected
Business
Area
Section
61H of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, as amended by the Localism Act
2011, requires that when designating a neighbourhood area, a local planning
authority should consider whether the area concerned should be designated as a
‘business area’. If a business area is designated, local businesses would have
the opportunity to be more involved in the formation of the neighbourhood plan
and would get an opportunity to vote (alongside registered electors) in the
later referendum on whether the neighbourhood plan should come into force.
However, this section of the Act is clear that a neighbourhood area should only
be designated as a business area if it is ‘wholly or predominantly business in
nature’.
Church
Knowle is a village and civil parish on the Isle of Purbeck. Whilst some
businesses are located and operate in Church Knowle, the parish is
predominantly rural in nature. Therefore, the Council is not aware of any
evidence to suggest that it would be appropriate to designate the proposed
neighbourhood area as a business area.
Any
conflict of interest declared by any member consulted
N/A
Any
dispensation granted in respect of any declared conflict of interest
N/A
Decision
That the Church
Knowle parish area in Dorset be designated a neighbourhood area.
Scheme of
delegation
Under the Officer
Scheme of Delegation (April 2019), the Executive Director of Place has the
power to ‘make a final determination as to whether to designate a neighbourhood
plan area and/or make such an area a business area’.
The Local Scheme of
Nomination sets out which functions have been nominated by the Executive
Director of Place and any conditions or limitations. This includes the power
‘to make a final determination as to whether to designate a neighbourhood plan
area and/or make such an area a business area’ in instances where the Council
is legally obliged to approve the designation. As detailed below the Council is
legally obliged to approve the neighbourhood area application received from
Church Knowle Parish Council.
(Decisions included can be executive or
non-executive in nature, depending on the delegation given. Please state if the delegation was granted by
the Cabinet or any other Committee or is detailed within the Scheme of
Delegation in the Council’s Constitution.)
Publication date: 25/05/2022
Date of decision: 25/05/2022
Accompanying Documents: