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Local Authority Bulletins

Improvements to local authority selection when creating applications

How we manage ‘Regulation 3’ applications 

Planning Portal now has the ability for any local planning authority to receive a ‘Regulation 3’ application. This was previously restricted to county councils and unitary authorities based on limitations of our former system that have now been superseded. 

Where the application is in a two-tier area, applicants now need to select the correct authority, which we feel is reasonable for them to do given the context of making a ‘Regulation 3’ application. 

Regulation 3 select Local Planning Authority

This now also allows all ‘Regulation 3’ applications to benefit from a fee bypass option, selectable in the ‘Exemptions’ section when calculating the fee, that allows the application to be submitted without payment or a service charge so that the local authority can handle the expense internally. 

Find out more about this from our LPA Toolkit on Regulation 3 applications1

How we inform applicants that a local authority is designated

Planning Portal now holds a list of designated local authorities to ensure that applicants are aware when a designation is in place. 

If the site location is in an area where government has designated a local authority as poor performing, we now bring this to the attention of the applicant when they select their application type. 

This ensures that we only display the warning for relevant locations and types of application. 

The warning provides a link to an FAQ that informs the applicant of their options2, and provides further links on to GOV.UK if they wish to find out more and/or apply directly to the Planning Inspectorate. 

Example of designation warning
  1. https://mcas-proxyweb.mcas.ms/certificate-checker?login=false&originalUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fecab.planningportal.co.uk.mcas.ms%2Fuploads%2FRegulation_3_Application_LPA_Toolkit.pdf%3FMcasTsid%3D15600&McasCSRF=1831e6a25d998e3dda6b489cb655a5681d7f812a3378c6c25b3708e4f3f0b3c4
  2. https://mcas-proxyweb.mcas.ms/certificate-checker?login=false&originalUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.planningportal.co.uk.mcas.ms%2Fservices%2Fhelp%2Ffaq%2Fapplications%2Fplanning-applications%2Fwhat-is-a-designated-local-authority%3FMcasTsid%3D15600&McasCSRF=1831e6a25d998e3dda6b489cb655a5681d7f812a3378c6c25b3708e4f3f0b3c4

Improvements to local authority selection when creating applications

    The Planning Portal is delivered by PortalPlanQuest Limited which is a joint venture between TerraQuest Solutions Limited and the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG). All content © 2024 Planning Portal.

    The Planning Portal is delivered by PortalPlanQuest Limited which is a joint venture between TerraQuest Solutions Limited and the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG). All content © 2024 Planning Portal.