What happens when the Parish Council receives a planning application for comment?

Parish Councils are entitled to be notified of every planning application within the Parish. The applications appear on the weekly planning register sent by North Somerset Council to the Clerk who will also be sent a set of drawings. The Clerk puts notification of applications received on the council meeting agendas and notifies all councillors.

All planning applications are also displayed on the North Somerset Council website. This is the easiest way for members of the public to see the applications, but if you wish to see paper copies of the drawings please contact the Clerk ( parishclerk@dundry.org.uk ) If you wish to comment on an application you can either make your comments to the Parish Council (preferably via the Clerk) and these will be taken into account when considering the application, or you can comment direct to North Somerset Council website.

Because Dundry is a small parish and does not receive many applications the Parish Council does not have a separate planning committee. However, there is a planning working group to whom the Clerk will pass on the drawings for consideration, before they are discussed at the monthly Parish Council meeting. Very rarely it may be necessary to hold a separate meeting in order to meet the deadline for comments set by North Somerset Council.

Councillors are bound by their Code of Conduct to declare any interest they may have in the application.

Planning Applications are considered by the District Council in relation to policies in their most recent overall development plan, although these may be overruled by ‘material considerations’. The Parish Council has to bear these in mind when considering an application. For a list of examples of material considerations click here.

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