How to comment on a planning application effectively
Although the essential major council wide IT system maintenance that took place in May and early June is now complete this has impacted the work of the Planning teams and we have a significant backlog of planning applications to process. We are currently prioritising the validation of statutory planning applications (those are the formal applications that we required to process and determine by Government).
If you have recently made a planning application or are intending to do so please note we are not able to offer our normal level of service and are currently running at least three weeks behind our usual timeframes.
We are taking steps to address the situation and will update the website with more information on timescales as soon as we are in a position to do so.
In the meantime we thank you for your patience and apologise for any inconvenience this causes.
Here’s where to find an existing planning application and comment on it.
It is important to note that the comments and views expressed in letters and reports published on this website are those of the applicants, consultees and representors who submitted them. As the local planning authority, we publish them on our website to make the process as transparent as possible, but doing so does not mean that we agree with or endorse these views or confirm any statements to be factually correct.
How to comment – the basics
To make sure we don’t misunderstand your comments, we can only accept them in writing. Your comments will appear publicly on the planning application’s webpage.
- You can comment online: search for the planning application by clicking here. If you know the reference number, type it in the search box near the top of this page. Once you have selected the relevant application click on the orange ‘comment now’ box which appears in the planning application details window. This will open the online comment form. The form will time-out after 60 minutes – if you have lots of comments we suggest you draft them in your computer notepad and paste them into the form.
- If you’d rather, you can email comments to registration@southandvale.gov.uk
- You can also send us a letter with your comments.
If you are emailing or sending a letter, please quote the planning application reference number, the address of the site and the name of the case officer, all of which you will find on the planning application’s webpage.
We will publish your comments providing they are planning related, comments found to contain swear words or defamatory language will not be published.
We will also use our discretion to redact any comments or information we consider to be derogatory or offensive but in most circumstances we will publish the comments.
We don’t acknowledge or respond to comments directly, due to the high numbers we receive.
It might take up to two working days for your comments to appear on the website.
Commenting effectively
Comment early
The sooner you send in your comments, the more time we have to make sure they’re taken in to account.
Petitions
If others share your opinion, it might make your comments more effective if you organise a petition.
A petition should include the names, addresses and the objections or supporting comments of those signing it. It is better to have a petition with a small number of signatures from residents who will be affected by the application than one signed by a large number of people who live far away from the affected area and/or will not be affected by the proposal.
Types of comments
When we decide applications, we can only take into account what is known as ‘material planning considerations’. These include:
- loss of privacy
- loss of light
- car parking
- traffic generation
- noise and disturbance
- character of the area
- Green Belt
- Conservation Area
- design, appearance and layout
- national and local policies.
We cannot take into account:
- loss of value to a property
- loss of view
- personal disagreements
- boundary disputes
- covenants
- commercial competition
- construction disturbance
- Sunday trading
- matters controlled under other legislation such as the Building Regulations
If you have any concerns about the matters I cannot consider, I suggest you contact either the Citizens Advice Bureau or you may want to consider seeking legal advice. We are unable to advise you about these matters.
For details of our privacy notice, please refer to our website (Service Specific Privacy Notices).
Our Statement of Community Involvement sets out how we consult on planning applications (Statement of Community Involvement)
Your councillors
If you have strong views either supporting or opposing an application, you may like to contact your district councillor. You can find their contact details here on our website.
Contact us - Planning
01235 422600
(Text phone users add 18001 before dialing)
South Oxfordshire District Council
Abbey House
Abbey Close
Abingdon
OX14 3JE
