National changes to the planning process are now in place

From Saturday 31 October, planning committees will focus on larger or more significant proposals, while many smaller, routine or technical applications will be decided by professional planning officers.

Planning applications will broadly fall into two groups:

• applications that must be decided by planning officers
• applications that could go to a planning committee

The UK-wide changes are intended to make the planning process clearer, more efficient and more consistent across the country.

Find out more about the National Scheme of Delegation changes and answers to frequently asked questions.