Planning committee changes: what’s on the agenda?
We know that on 18 December 2025, in an early Christmas present, Royal Assent was given for a new way of working for planning committees as part of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill. This bill is described by the Government as its “pro-growth landmark piece of legislation to get Britain building again”. What the Government hope it will do is introduce some new rigour in the councillor’s part in the planning process, repositioning decisions within Local Plans and policies rather than making them subject to committee dynamics on the day.
Two changes which have been seen to be rather less controversial are the reduction and standardization of committee size, and the introduction of mandatory training and certification of planning committee members.
Committee Size and Training
Currently planning committees are usually made up of about 10-15 councillors, conforming to the political mix of the full council (though it is forbidden for councillors to vote in party blocs). A few additional councillors will be on standby as substitutes, and members will all have received at least basic training. Many are very experienced – but that experience may not have prepared them for new elements of planning such as Grey Belt applications.
By reducing planning committee size (perhaps to a panel of 10 members or fewer), and by extending accredited training further than the existing in-house procedures which can merely cover the very basic rules (such as avoiding pre-determination) and could consist of a slideshow and seminar for only a couple of hours, the thought is that a more informed and expert approach to planning decisions will result. This should lead to more consistent decision making. Speaking as a councillor who served 10 years on planning, I feel sure the accreditation will be welcome. However for those who remain on planning committees, how will they manage what seems like an extended workload? The answer might come from reducing the number of applications that come to committee.
Delegating decisions
The third reform of planning committees is by far the most controversial among councillors, and this is the introduction of a national scheme of delegation. Each council decides on its own scheme of delegation, which is the set of rules under which applications may be decided without taking them to committee. 90-95% of planning applications typically get decided by council planners without going to committee – mostly household extensions and minor alterations.
Speaking with a chair of planning at one of the largest planning authorities in the country, one major question is whether town or parish councils, or individual councillors (for example, in their own ward), will retain the power to call in planning applications for decision at planning committee.
The final terms of the national scheme have not been released at time of writing. However it is clear that the aim of the reforms will be to balance local decision-making with a much more rules-based approach to making those decisions. All councillors, including town and parish councillors, will recognize the “performative” nature of many call-ins – done to show they are speaking up if other loud voices oppose applications, even if they are in line with local plans and policies. We all like to be popular at election time, so it often pays to be populist even if it is unrealistic and illogical to other eyes. However the tilt of national policy, driven by a determination to solve the housing shortage and a desire to see economic growth, is to make planning a rational, rules-based system based on sound local planning and place-making.
In future councillors should prepare for a new approach to planning. A far better trained and informed panel of a few councillors will take decisions over a smaller number of applications which are genuinely matters requiring local judgement, or which are very much out of the ordinary or exceptions to policy.
Ward councillors and parish and town councillors should do two things to influence the development of their communities: become far more engaged in the detail and in predicting the implications of Local Plan policies and allocations; and become involved far earlier in engaging developers and landowners to shape plans.
The Community Communications Partnership works hard to engage local councillors and communities in discussing plans well before they have been finalized, so they suit the local area and contribute to facilities and infrastructure. Don’t hesitate to get in touch if we can help in your area.
