It is our aim to provide, prior to the submission of your planning application, clear and accurate advice and information. This includes explaining (free of charge) the application’s necessary content, the time it will take to arrive at a formal decision and the likely outcome.
You can get advice and information in a number of ways:
Face to face with a planning officer
Through an appointment system with an officer at one of the following surgeries:
- Monday - 9.00 am - 12.00 noon and 1.00 pm - 4.30 pm - Civic Offices, Knoll Street, Cleethorpes DN35 8LN.
- Wednesday - 9.00 am - 12.00 noon and 1.00 pm – 4.30 pm - Municipal Offices, Town Hall Square, Grimsby, DN31 1HU.
- Friday - 9.00 am - 12.00 noon - Immingham Civic Offices, Pelham Road, Immingham, DN40 1QF
You can book an appointment through the Central Access Points at the above offices or by telephoning Development Management Services on the telephone numbers given in the contact information shown on the right of this page.
Email or letter
Email enquiries can be sent to planning@nelincs.gov.uk and postal enquiries to: Development Management Services, Origin 1, Origin Way, Europarc, Grimsby, DN37 9TZ.
We aim to respond to letters and emails within 10 days.
Telephone
By calling Development Management Services on the telephone numbers given in the contact information shown on the right of this page.
Internet
A significant amount of useful information and guidance on town planning can be found on the Planning Portal website in addition to that given in the pages here.
Advice available
Advice is generally split into three categories a) whether planning permission is required; b) pre-application advice as to whether planning permission would be likely to be granted, and c) how long it will take for a decision to be taken.
a) Do I need planning permission?
The enlargement, improvement or alteration of your home may often not need planning permission; and the same may also be true for creating and extending driveways and paths or erecting a garden building However, in order to be sure that what you want to do does not need planning permission you are advised to contact us, before starting any work. A form to assist with this can be found on the right of this page.
The use of land for certain activities may also not require planning permission although you should again contact us beforehand in order to confirm this.
For other proposals you are advised to contact us to confirm the need for planning permission, but also so that we can advise on the content of your application, if one is required, to give it the best chance of success. If it is not acceptable then we will tell you so at an early stage (see below).
b) Pre-application advice
Where planning permission is required, we strongly recommend that you obtain advice from us before submitting your application. This lets you find out whether the Council is likely to support your application, before you commit to further work and expense. It also means that we can work with you to reduce the likelihood of the need for changes to your proposal once an application has been submitted, which itself can mean that there is, by necessity, a delay in making a decision.
For Major development proposals (e.g. ten houses or above) we will provide a Development Team Approach to ensure that you have one point of contact with us.
What we need from you first
To assist in providing a response we will need specific information from you; which will vary according to the scale and type of development planned. Clarity, on what information is required, should be obtained from us first and may include the following:
- A location plan indicating proposed site in red.
- A block plan showing the position of the proposal within the site.
- Proposed building dimensions
- Sketch drawings of the building(s)
- External / Internal photographs.
- Details of how the planned use will operate, such as the type and nature of business, if a change of use, along with hours of operation, estimated visitors/customers and staff.
- Contact name and address as well as phone number and an e-mail address.
- For major proposals, the quantity and level of information is likely to be greater.
- Proposals in relation to listed buildings or within conservation areas have specific requirements about which advice is given here- Investigating and exploring the past.
Dealing with your enquiry
We can usually give an informal view as to the likely outcome of any minor planning application (such as for a house extension) at a meeting/duty officer appointment. In some cases though an officer may take a proposal away to consider further; so it will take a little longer to get back to you.
If is not possible to give a view at the meeting, or a written opinion is sought, we aim to reply within 15 working days.
Any views or opinions expressed are given in good faith, and to the best of our ability, without prejudice to the formal consideration of any planning application; which will be subject to public consultation and ultimately decided by the Council.
c) How long will to take for a decision to be taken?
Most planning applications will be decided within 8 weeks of receipt and many more minor and uncontroversial proposals more quickly than this. For most major applications, the target is 13 weeks. We will discuss with you, at the pre-application stage, the likely time it will take to achieve a decision and the reasons for this; which may include the need to refer the decision to Planning Committee (Find information about planning committee) whether the application must be referred to Central Government and if it will require a legal agreement to be concluded with you before a planning permission can be issued.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
It has been decided that from 3 January 2012 all decision notices and the relevant notes on planning and associated applications will be sent electronically to the e-mail address provided by yourself on the application form rather than sending a paper copy of the decision notice as at present.