Govt to develop new method of measuring council performance
- 05 Oct
The government is working with planning professionals to establish how planning departments will be judged to be poorly performing under controversial new reform measures.
The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) is understood to be talking to senior council planners to help define what qualifies as poor performance in the speed and quality of decisions.
It follows communities secretary Eric Pickles' announcement last month that the government intends to legislate to allow the Planning Inspectorate (PINS) to decide applications if an English council has "a track record of consistently poor performance" on decision-making.
The DCLG has yet to make clear how it intends to judge whether council planning teams are consistently poorly performing.
The Royal Town Planning Institute said the speed of a judgement can depend on "a huge range of local factors as well as resourcing".
Planning Officers Society president Malcolm Sharp said the report shows that most councils are doing a good job and the society would support the few that appear to have problems.
He added that it is important to use a planning performance agreement (PPA) where possible for major applications, which involves setting a clear timetable to process schemes outside normal time targets.
British Property Federation senior policy officer Ghislaine Trehearne said the government needs to give PPAs more strength:
"At present, they are not legally enforceable and are therefore toothless in the face of any disagreements."
In his ministerial statement on the reforms, Pickles said that the government will work with the Local Government Association to increase the use of PPAs.
A DCLG spokesman said:
"This report is part of a package of measures both to highlight the best and worst performing councils in the country, and to work with the worst to help raise their game.
We will publish more information about the planning guarantee in due course."The report is available via Planning Resource.co.uk/go/referencesection
Source: Planning
Related articles
- 08 Nov
NHS BOSS SETS OUT A CASE FOR CASH BOOST
The speech by Mr Stevens at the NHS Providers' annual conference of health managers is being made at the time when three reputable health think-thanks- the Health Foundation, the King's Fund and the...
- 09 Jun
THERESA MAY PLEDGES TO REPLACE THE MENTAL HEALTH ACT 1983
According to Ms May, the new bill would introduce the following:According to the Tories, the proposals were described as the biggest change to mental health treatment law in over 30 years.Ms May...
- 30 May
THE PRESENT FIRST PRIME MINISTER OF SCOTLAND IS TO PLEDGE AGAINST ANY PLANS TO PRIVATISE THE NHS
It is also expected that Sturgeon will do the following as proof of her party's commitment to fighting against further austerity:Sturgeon said this before Tuesday's manifesto launch:"While the polls...
- 17 Mar
402 MILLION POUNDS WILL BE INVESTED IN COUNCILS WITH THE GREATEST HOMELESSNESS DEMAND FROM APRIL 2017
Presently, funding is only used for homeless households and not for the prevention of homelessness in the first instance.The funding by the Department for Communities and Local Government is set to...
- 15 Mar
RULES AROUND PERSONAL INDEPENDENCE PAYMENTS MAY CHANGE ON THURSDAY
Ministers have advised chief executives of over 30 charities which claimed that people will be left without vital financial support, to restrict access to a disability benefit.The Disability Benefits...
- 06 Mar
THE GOVERNMENT HAS BEEN URGED BY THE BMA TO INCREASE HEALTH SPENDING BY 10 BILLION POUNDS
This increase in health spending to a proportion of GDP that matched that of the 10 leading economies across Europe could pay for at least 35,000 extra beds a day and many more GP's, according to the...
- 05 Sep
MANY DOMESTIC VIOLENCE REFUGES AT RISK OF CLOSING DUE TO HOUSING BENEFIT CAP
Women who have been victims of domestic violence as well as their children are at risk of falling into the hands of their violent partners if the government caps housing benefit in the social sector...
- 03 Sep
Data on disability benefits refused by DWP
DWP officials have refused a second request for basic information on disability benefits using the “Section 22” exemption they used previously, reports The Independent.The Department had been...
- 02 Sep
UN to investigate how welfare reforms will affect disability rights
A disability charity in Scotland has said it’s been contacted by the UN’s Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities as part of an inquiry into Britain’s treatment of people with...
- 01 Sep
Benefit cuts affecting 48,500 families in Liverpool
Analysis from Liverpool City Council has found that around 48,500 households are likely to lose their benefits due to new government reforms, reports the Liverpool Echo. Councillor Jane Corbett has...
Responding to the DWP Consultation: Housing Benefit Reform - Supported Housing "Sincere thanks to Michael Patterson for an excellent presentation on the HB Reform issues in Leeds last week, and for all the very helpful info and links. I do intend to respond on behalf of our organisation, Caring For Life, but feel that Support Solutions' response is excellent." E.S. - Caring for Life
