Do parish councils grant planning permission?

• Town and parish councils are not Planning Authorities.  Town and parish councils are only statutory consultees in the planning process.
• This means that they only have the right to be informed of planning applications within the parish.
• They cannot approve or reject planning applications.
• They can only comment on planning applications in the same way that individuals can comment.
• Consequently the length of time taken to determine a planning application is governed by the local planning authority not the parish council.
• A parish council can request that it be given extra time to comment on an application.
• The decision whether this is granted rests solely with the planning authority and it’s own deadlines for decision making.

How do parish councils comment on planning applications?

• Parish councils can only agree to comment on planning applications in properly called council or committee meetings which the public can attend.
• The comments agreed in the council meeting are submitted in writing by the parish clerk to the relevant planning authority.
• The process is exactly the same as that of an individual wishing to comment on a planning application.
• Parish councils are statutory consultees and have no powers to approve or reject planning applications, they can only comment or not on applications.