Background
The Government introduced new regulation in October 2009 (via
Section 96A of the Town and Country Planning Act “The Act”) to
enable the Local Planning Authority (LPA) to deal with small
changes to planning permissions. Previous to this there was
no statutory mechanism for LPA’s to deal with such minor changes
other than through an application to vary or remove conditions
attached to the permission (via Section 73 of The Act).
Therefore, there are now two ways in which changes can be made to
an approved scheme other than submitting a whole new
application.
Non-Material Amendments - “Non-mat” (Section 96A)
- Only a person with an “interest”
in the land (e.g. freeholder, leaseholder with a lease over 7
years) can make a “non-mat” application
- There is a form and fee
applicable for a “non-mat” Please see the
Planning One Stop Shop for more details
- As approval of a “non-mat” is
not a new planning permission (but is attached to the original
permission to which it relates), no design and access statement is
needed.
- New plans showing the proposed
alteration(s) will be needed – more than one alteration can be made
on a single form
- The LPA has 28
days to determine the application
- Non material changes to
conditions can be made under the “non mat” procedure (see below for
how we will decide if this is appropriate)
- The LPA cannot approve a
“non-mat” application if it considers the changes are too great to
be considered under the “non-mat” procedure. This will
certainly be the case where an applicant wishes to include land
within an application that was not included within the red line on
the site location plan as originally approved. Other examples
where a “non-mat” application will likely be inappropriate
are:-
- Insertion of
additional windows or enlarging approved windows which overlook
neighbouring properties
- Increase in the
overall size of an extension/increase in roof height
- Change in the
layout of a proposal
- Increase in the
number of dwellings or buildings
- Increase in number
of bedrooms contained within approved dwellings (this will affect
Section 106 contributions)
The extent of the change and whether it is significant is dependent
upon the officer’s planning judgement applied on a case by case
basis.
- It is possible to apply to have
a condition added to a planning permission which lists the approved
plans under the “non mat” procedure
- The usual rights of appeal
apply (under Section 78 of “The Act”) if the application is refused
or not determined within 28 days.
- “Non-mat” will not normally be
subject to consultation
Minor Material Amendments (Section 73)
Can be used if the change to the
planning permission is too great to be considered a “non-mat” but
ONLY if there is a suitable condition attached to the planning
permission which could be varied or removed to facilitate the
changes to the scheme.
- There is a form and fee to
apply for a
minor material amendment.
- The LPA has 8
weeks to determine the application (or 13 weeks in the
event the parent application is a ‘major’)
- Permission granted under
Section 73 as a minor material amendment (unlike a “non-mat”) is
the grant of a new “stand alone” planning permission. As such
the LPA must re-impose conditions attached to the previous
permission (plus any additional ones) as they see fit without
altering the fundamental principles of the permission already
granted.
- The application will be
considered against current adopted development plan policy and the
planning officer will need to have particular regard to any changes
in policy that have come about between the original permission
being granted and the new application being determined.
- The LPA will consider the need
for contributions or other matters that will need to be delivered
via a legal agreement (under Section 106 of “The Act”). This
assessment will be made against the adopted planning policy in
force at the time the new application is submitted and considered
whether or not the original planning permission was subject to a
legal agreement.
- LPA’s have discretion over
whether and who to consult on Section 73 applications – except
where the application involves an Environmental Impact Assessment
where consultation is compulsory (subject to EIA
regulations). Consultation can vary from that carried out
originally if the change to the scheme only affects certain groups
or individuals.
- A Section 73 application cannot
be used to vary the time limit imposed on a planning permission to
implement the permission – this is normally 3 years.
- There is a right of appeal
against refusal or if the application is not determined in 8
weeks.
- Such applications will be
consulted on / advertised as if they were a ‘normal’ planning
application.
How will we decide if an amendment is either a “Non-mat” or a
Minor Material Amendment (S73 application)?
As can be seen from the points above, certain
matters are “fixed” by the regulations whilst others are
discretionary. The following sets out how we intend to deal
with those areas of discretion;
There is no statutory definition
of what a “non-mat” is but it will vary depending on the nature and
scale of the approved scheme. We will:-
- Register and validate all
applications received for “non-mats”. If the case officer
then assesses that the alteration is too great to be considered a
“non-mat” we will invite the applicant to withdraw the application
and apply for a minor amendment. If this invitation is not taken up
prior to the close of the 28 days we will refuse the “non-mat.” We
will not refund or roll the fee forward to a minor amendment
application in the event the “non-mat” is withdrawn.
- Assess the change in the
context of the whole of the approved development, therefore a
change; say to a window in a planning permission for an extension
to an existing property may have more significance than a change to
a window in the centre of a large new residential scheme for many
dwellings.
- We will consider whether the
change to the scheme warrants consultation (with neighbours and/or
consultees e.g. the highway authority. Again, this will
depend on the scale and nature of the scheme AND the relevance of
the change having regard to the key issues that were considered or
raised on the original permission. We will consider whether,
had the amendment been proposed at the time the original
application was being considered, we would have carried out further
consultation.
- If there is a need to consult
we WILL NOT NORMALLY accept the amendment under the “non mat”
procedure (In certain circumstances we may exercise some discretion
in consulting on a “non-mat” however, if we receive objections we
will most likely need to invite a full planning application to be
submitted)
- If there is no need to consult
then in the majority of cases the amendment will suitable for
submission under the “non-mat” procedure.
- This decision is at the
discretion of the LPA and will involve the planning case officer’s
best judgement in consultation with the Head of Service where
necessary.
The same method (as above) will be
used to decide whether a proposed alteration to a condition can be
considered as a “non-mat” (S96A) or as a minor material amendment
(S73).
Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas
A “non-mat” cannot be made to a listed
building or conservation area consent.
Further Information
"Greater flexibility for planning permissions: Guidance" -
Communities and Local Government