Charging for Pre-application Advice
Planning decisions shape the world around us and the processes
become ever more complex. Dover District Council aims to enable and
promote high quality development as part of the Council’s ambitious
agenda to transform our District through growth.
Pre application discussion has a key role as the better and
earlier the advice we can give, the better and faster the
outcome. We have now introduced charges so we can improve
how we help you understand the best way to go about seeking
permission.
This should not be confused with whether you need planning
permission which is handled through a different process.
Our scheme has been developed following comment from
professional agents and a review of what happens in other
Councils.
Why Seek Advice?
We encourage and welcome the opportunity to provide advice
before an application is made. Our aims are to enable and promote
high quality development as part of the Council’s ambitious agenda
to transform our District through growth. We have reviewed how we
can put more effort into achieving this. Whilst we have to
introduce charges, they will enable us to provide a dedicated,
responsive and professional service which will reduce uncertainty
and be highly cost effective for people preparing a planning
application. These fees are in addition to the fees payable for the
submission of applications. If you make an application having
received advice for which you have paid, the full application
submission fee remains applicable.
The advice is intended to help you understand the best way to go
about seeking permission. It should not be confused with whether
you need planning permission which is handled through a different
process.
There are considerable benefits in seeking our advice as
- It gives you an opportunity to understand how our policies will
be applied to your development.
- It can identify at an early stage where there is a need for
specialist input, for example about listed buildings, trees,
landscape, noise, transport, contaminated land, ecology or
archaeology.
- It will assist you in preparing proposals for formal submission
which, providing you have taken our advice fully into account, will
be handled more quickly.
- It may lead to a reduction in time spent by your professional
advisors in working up proposals.
It may indicate that a proposal is completely unacceptable,
saving you the cost of pursuing a formal application.
In addition to determining applications for planning permission,
advertisement consent and listed building consent, the Development
Control Section is able to provide you with advice and information
on a variety of topics such as design.
We will still offer free informal telephone advice on simple
enquiries (telephone 01304 872486). You may also be able to find
the information you need on the planning pages of our website
www.dover.gov.uk/planning or
on the Planning Portal’s website www.planningportal.gov.uk.
In addition we offer brief advice from a Duty Officer for District
householders seeking to extend their homes.
Charges will now be made for pre-application advice, compliance
checks and researching planning histories for permitted development
restrictions.
Research of Permitted Development Rights and Planning
Histories
This provides confirmation of whether or not permitted
development rights have been removed from a dwelling. You may need
to know this to confirm if planning permission is required or
not.
- Research on Permitted Development Rights: £35
- Research on Planning Histories: £35
- If no research is required there will be no fee but
photocopying charges may apply.
All prices are inclusive of VAT
What matters can be covered?
The matters which could be the subject of pre application advice
include:-
- Planning History of the site;
- Statutory designations of the site, such as Conservation areas,
listed buildings, protected trees, nature conservation etc.
- Relevant planning policies and other material factors applying
to the site/development
- The necessary forms, plans and fee
- Supporting information and documents including Local Validation
Requirements
- Advice regarding the procedure, consultation arrangements and
estimated time scale for processing the application;
- Any requirements for developer contributions to the
infrastructure necessary to support the proposed development, for
example affordable housing, open space, accessibility etc.;
- Informal, and without prejudice, comments on the content,
preparation and presentation of an application likely to satisfy
the Council’s planning policies;
- The merits of draft proposals (e.g. appropriateness of design)
and
- The provision of copies of any relevant documents, subject to
the Council’s standard copying charges
Information we will need from you
We will always ask you to write to us with details of your
proposal if you want us to comment on a particular building,
extension, design etc. If you wish us to meet you on site, it may
be preferable to contact us first so the correct fee can be
established
For all enquiries you will need to send us the following as a
minimum:
- Written details of the address and proposal;
- Description of the nature and scale of the development proposed
and the uses to which land and buildings are to be put;
- Site location plan with the site clearly marked (to a
recognised scale, north point etc);
- Sketch drawings providing details of the proposal (to a
recognised scale);
- Photographs of the site and surrounding area, with particular
regard to any nearby houses or other development which might be
affected by your proposal
- Contact details including phone number and email address;
- Request for a site meeting (if any)
- The appropriate fee - No detailed work will be undertaken until
the full fee has been paid.
Major schemes
All of the above information, plus;
- An initial design and access statement
- Access and parking arrangements;
- This may also need to be accompanied by ecological, landscape,
contamination, flood and transport assessments depending upon the
location, nature and complexity of the development.
What we will do
On receipt of your initial enquiry, we will decide whether it
requires pre-application advice and what type of advice is most
suitable. We will then check that the appropriate fee has been
paid. If it has not, we will write to you confirming that we will
not progress your enquiry until the appropriate fee has been
paid.
Once the fee has been paid, your enquiry will be allocated to an
appropriate officer.
An acknowledgement will be sent within 3 working days of a valid
enquiry being received and it will include a receipt for the fee
and confirmation of the officer handling the request. We will do
our best to reply within 20 working days. In particularly complex
cases, more time may be needed and we advise you about when you may
expect a reply.
The written reply setting out our advice will comprise the
service for the standard charge. Further enquiries will be charged
another fee.
If we do not have enough information to answer your enquiry then
we will write to you by letter or email, setting out what
information we need. If the enquiry relates to a Major proposal
then you will be contacted by the officer allocated to your
enquiry, who will confirm whether there is sufficient information
to provide advice and, if not, will ask for additional information.
In either case, the clock will stop until all of the information is
received.
Where a meeting is sought, we will arrange a suitable date
depending on the complexity of the scheme and the amount of work
that will be needed beforehand. This may include any time necessary
to obtain initial views of other interested parties such as the
Highways Engineer, Environment Agency etc. However, no meetings
will take place without prior sight of the requested
information.
Attendance of other officers at the meeting, including
specialist advisors, will be at our discretion but will not require
the payment of additional fees.
Following the meeting, we will confirm the advice in a letter or
email. Again, this will usually be within 20 working days unless
the proposal is particularly complex, when an alternative timescale
will be agreed at the end of the meeting.
Should a further meeting be required, the scope for such a
meeting will be established beforehand together with the relevant
fee which must be received together with any relevant documents
before the subsequent meeting.
Any meeting will normally take place at the Council Offices at
Whitfield. The Development Control Manager may exceptionally vary
this to allow a request for a meeting on site. If so, the fee will
normally be adjusted to reflect time spent.
The Development Control Manager has the right to decline a
request for pre-application advice where it is not considered
either appropriate or necessary.
What are the Charges?
Major Developments
- New residential development of 10 or more new dwellings;
- Change of use of buildings or land where the gross floorspace
or site are is 1,000m² or more;
- New non-residential buildings and extensions to non-residential
buildings of 1,000m² or more of gross floorspace;
- Mixed use developments where the combined gross floorspace is
of 1,000m² or more.
- Other large scale or complex/specialist applications that
require significant officer input (to cover cases such as the
Langdon Wind Farm which otherwise would fall as a ‘minor
development’ based on these criteria)
Fee
- £250 or 1% of the appropriate fee under the Application Fees
Regulations, whichever is the greater, for written advice only.
Additional advice may be required and will be charged at the same
rate;
- £500 or 1.5% of the appropriate fee under the Application Fees
Regulations, whichever is the greater for up to an hour long
meeting plus written confirmation, additional meetings may be
required and these will be charged at the same rate. The Planning
Officer will agree the need for additional meetings and may
recommend the involvement of third parties if it is felt necessary
(Specialist Advice, Ward Members, Parish Councils etc.;
- Where such proposals involve a parallel application relating to
a Listed Building, there will be a single charge at the higher
rate.
Minor Developments
- New residential developments of 1 to 9 dwellings;
- Residential conversions involving change of use to more that
one dwelling;
- Change of use of buildings or land where the gross floorspace
or site area is less that 1,000m²;
- New non-residential buildings and extensions to non-residential
buildings from 100m² to 1,000m² of gross floorspace;
- Mixed use developments where the combined gross floorspace is
less that 1,000m².
- Proposals affecting Listed Buildings or Conservation
Areas;
- Advertisements.
Fee
- £150 for written advice only. Additional advice may be required
and will be charged at the same rate;
- £250 for up to an hour long meeting plus written confirmation,
additional meetings may be required and these will be charged at
the same rate. The Planning Officer will agree the need for
additional meetings and may recommend the involvement of third
parties if it is felt necessary (Specialist Advice, Ward Members,
Parish Councils etc.);
- Where such proposals involve a parallel application relating to
a Listed Building, there will be a single charge at the higher
rate.
Other Types of Developments
New buildings and extensions and alterations to non-listed
buildings that require permission and are not covered above.
Works to protected trees
Fee
- £50 for written advice only. Additional advice may be required
and will be charged at the same rate;
- £60 for up to an hour long meeting plus written confirmation,
additional meetings may be required and these will be charged at
the same rate. The Planning Officer will agree the need for
additional meetings and may recommend the involvement of third
parties if it is felt necessary (Specialist Advice, Ward Members,
and Parish Councils etc.);
- Where such proposals involve a parallel application relating to
a Listed Building, there will be a single charge at the higher
rate.
Please note that there will be no charge for 15 minutes’
advice with our Duty Officer on one occasion at our Offices on such
matters to District householders. If you wish us to visit
your site, the higher charges will apply.
What the costs cover
These fees cover administration costs and the time spent in
research, assessment, a meeting as necessary, and in making a
written response.
Any request for written advice must be accompanied by the
relevant fee otherwise advice cannot be provided. Each project or
separate site referred to in an enquiry will be charged at the
appropriate rate. Sites may not be artificially divided in an
attempt to attract a different tariff. Multiple requests will
attract the appropriate multiple fees. The Development Control
Manager has the right to determine the fee. In the event of any
disputes, the issue will be referred to the Head of Development and
Public Protection whose word will be final. Where the appropriate
fee is not paid within 15 working days after a reminder, submitted
details will be returned and no response given.
Please Note
Our pre-application advice service is offered to both developers
and individual applicants including householders. In either case
there are some general points which you should take into account
before you contact us:
- Try to contact us at the earliest reasonable opportunity in
your project;
- Undertake some initial research yourself including looking at
our notes on how to submit a valid application;
- Sound out the views of those who may be affected by your
proposals;
- Remember the more information you can give us, the more
accurate and helpful our response can be – vague proposals can
receive only vague advice. The key to the success of this service
will be you providing us with adequate information in advance –
this is set out in more detail in the documents mentioned above;
and
- On complex issues be prepared to seek private professional help
– our service is not intended to be an alternative to employing
professional consultants.
We will always do our best to give you the best advice we can on
the information which is to hand. However, you need to be aware
that any advice given by Council Officers for pre-application
enquiries does not constitute a formal decision by the Council as
Local Planning Authority. Any views or opinions are given in good
faith, and to the best of our ability but without prejudice to the
formal consideration of any planning application.
The final decision on any application that you may then make can
only be taken after we have consulted local people, statutory
consultees and any other interested parties. It will be made by
planning officers or by the Planning Committee and be based on all
of the information available at that time.
You should therefore be aware that officers cannot guarantee the
final formal decision that will be made on your application(s).
However, any pre-application advice that has been provided will be
carefully considered in reaching a decision or recommendation on an
application; subject to the proviso that circumstances and
information may change or come to light that could alter that
position.
Please note that the weight given to pre application advice will
decline over time.
Contact Planning
Telephone: 01304 872486
email: developmentcontrol@dover.gov.uk
