has anyone ever attended a planning committee meeting?

[bubblepop]

my dh will be going to one this week regarding a neighbours plans for his house. has anyone ever been to one..what can we expect and are members of the public allowed to speak? i hope theres someone out there who can help..thanks

Hello. I have never attended a committee meeting myself but I provide written advice to local planning authorities and I know people who have. I understand that members of the public are allowed to speak as long as they register themselves beforehand (around 14 days before I think). I believe the meetings are pretty structured. There is usually a limit to the number of people who can speak for and against a proposal, to ensure a balance of views. There is also a time limit on contributions.

As your DH is going to the meeting this week it may be too late for him to speak, but it would be best to contact your LPA about this. You should be able to get hold of an agenda for the meeting - most councils have this information on their websites these days. Hope this helps.

thanks twinkle.

twinkle, hope you don't mind me asking, but are you a consultee for enviromental health? bit of a long shot, but if you are, maybe you could give me some advice? if you don't reply, i understand.

Hi Bubblepop. I am a consultee for heritage issues so probably wouldn't be able to help. However I do know a fair bit about the planning process so feel free to fire away.

hi twinkie, thanks for the offer. don't think you can help me much further. . never mind. thanks anyway.