Durham County Council is currently responsible for deciding planning applications for Haswell and Haswell Plough. The County Council is responsible for consulting residents and interested parties on planning proposals and taking views into account in reaching a decision. Such views are one of many ‘material planning considerations’ the County Council has to take into account. Members of the public can and should make their views known direct to the County Council. Residents are normally consulted on applications by letter or by site notices if they live adjacent or nearby proposed developments.
It is Durham County Council’s decision on who it may consult although it is required to consult certain individuals and bodies in particular circumstances.
Haswell Parish Council is a statutory consultee on planning applications. It is consulted at the same time as adjacent occupiers and must make its representations in the same timescales as other consultees. In effect as a publicly elected body, it makes representations on behalf of the community. That it is not to say that it will either support or object to a proposal if it is simply asked to do so.
Haswell Parish Council will formally consider proposals that it is consulted on, normally at a monthly Council Meeting. It will then come to a decision on whether to support, object to or offer no objections to a proposal having taken into account the information it has at the time of its decision. As a small local council it does not employ professional planning staff and will reach a view on a proposal on the basis of its experience.
Durham County Council employ professional planning staff as it is their duty to decide the application and they require professional guidance to meet their responsibilities. In deciding applications the County council consider all ‘material planning considerations’ this includes things like the National Planning Policy Framework and County planning policy such as the County Durham Plan.
If you have any views to express on any application that may affect you then you should raise these directly with Durham County Council as they are the decision making body. Informal help and advice can be obtained from the planning officers at Durham County Council. If you want independent advice then please take a look at Planning Portal or Planning Aid for further information.
From this part of our site you can see what major applications the County Council have been consulting us on, as well as view the Durham County Council Weekly Planning Application List Search on the Durham County Council website for all recent planning applications in County Durham.
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