Decision

That the Planning Committee resolved to defer the determination of this matter following receipt of additional comments from Taunton Town Council and Trull Parish Council to enable further engagement with both the Town Council and the Parish Council regarding the matter. The Committee also acknowledged that by deferring the application this would mean that the application would then be delegated to officers for decision, due to the fact that The Town and Country Planning (Discharge of Local Planning Authority Functions) (England) Regulations 2026 (SI 2026/854) will come into force on 31 October 2026 and, from that date, all categories of development falling within Schedule 1 of said legislation (including applications for non-material amendments made under section 96A of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990), must, by law, be determined by an officer. The legislation introduces what is commonly referred to as ‘The National Scheme of Delegation of Planning Functions’.

It was agreed officers would bring a future update on this application to the Planning West Committee for information and discussion, but not for decision.

(Voting: 8 In Favour, 1 Against and 1 Abstention)