Parish Council

[cassa333]

Not sure where this goes so sorry if its in the wrong place.

If a parish councils planning meetng was on say 20th March but their official comment/objection/approval was logged on the county web site on 9th March could that be seen as wrong or a conflict of some sort?

If this is not allowed what could be done?

[woofgang]

They don't have to have had a formal meeting to log a comment. it may be that they have policies which say that they always approve or object to certain requests or it may simply be that they were met together for something else and dealt with stuff as they were there.

[cassa333]

Thanks woofgang.

But what is the point of a public meeting to discuss and vote when they have already discussed and officaly made their decision in private?

[woofgang]

But while the public can attend the meeting, they cannot speak or vote, also planning requests do not have to be discussed at the public part of the meeting and the results of any votes taken while the public are there do not have to be declared to the meeting. I am not sure what the problem is (I mean this nicely) The comments are open to public view as are the reasons for objecting to the planning request...I don't think they have to give reasons for approval.

[cassa333]

Why hold a discussion and vote in public if the decision has already been made and officialy logged?

[woofgang]

cassa, they don't have to. Planning meeting schedules are made at the beginning of the year and put in the calendar. Stuff happens, people fall ill, way too many applications come through to be dealt with at the meeting and so on.
Do you think that if it had been discussed publicly (and it doesn't have to be) there would have been a different decision reached? Are you saying that the application was discussed at the meeting anyway even though a comment had already been logged? Did the meeting agree to approve the application and the comment was an objection?

[Peter Pedant]

Parish Councils have their own rules

The clerk of Beaminster Parish Council ( me old council ) told me with pride that B had voted to allow in observers at his say-so - for whenever 1995
and by that time I had already attended Manchester City Council's meeting AND addressed the councillors by invitation on a planning issue

The councils have recommendations from their clerks and are not bound and sometimes do not, follow them.

[cassa333]

They made there decision on 9th march but had a public planning meeting on 20th March where it was discussed and voted on then.

[woofgang]

and did the vote come to a different conclusion?

[cassa333]

No it was the same. But some of the council members would have voted differently to how they did if they had heard the evidence that was only allowed to be heard after the vote had been taken. When one wanted to change his vote he was told he couldn't.

[woofgang]

and would the changed vote have changed the outcome?

[woofgang]

How do you know that the other council members would have voted differently?

[cassa333]

they tried to change their vote after we spoke but were told they couldn't

[woofgang]

well I don't think there's much you can do about how the parish council functions but it sounds like you'd have grounds for appeal if the application doesn't go your way. Is it your application?

[cassa333]

It isn't mine but I am involved with trying to get it approved.

[woofgang]

if it doesn't go your way then appeal. The PC can only recommend now, they can't approve or refuse.

[cassa333]

Hi,

It looks like it will be approved by the planning officer (yaaah) but the parish council have said they will appeal to the developeen control committee if it is.

We just wondered if they do can they get it over turned this way? or are they just full of hot air?

Thanks