The Governance Committee of Lewisham Council met on Tuesday 14 July 2026 to discuss significant upcoming changes to how planning applications are determined, driven by new national legislation. The committee noted the government's response to planning committee reform and agreed that a further report detailing specific constitutional amendments would be brought to a future meeting.

Changes to How Planning Applications are Determined

The committee discussed the impending national reforms to planning decision-making, introduced by the Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025. These reforms will replace local discretion with a mandatory national scheme of delegation, fundamentally altering how planning applications are processed. Melanie Dawson, who introduced the report, explained that the new regulations introduce a two-tier structure: Schedule 1 (Tier A) applications must be determined by officers, removing the ability for councillors to decide on these matters. This category includes householder applications and minor developments. Schedule 2 (Tier B) applications are for more significant developments, but there will be a strong presumption that these will also be determined by officers unless a specific gateway test is met. This test requires agreement from both a nominated officer and a nominated member (typically the committee chair) that the application raises issues of economic, social, or environmental significance.

Councillor Ese Erheriene sought clarification on whether other councils were collaborating on these changes, but Ms. Dawson stated that councils would largely have to implement the government-determined structure, with little leeway. Councillor Oliver Matejka inquired about the implications of the new 13-member cap per committee, but it was noted that Lewisham's current committee sizes are already below this limit, and proportional representation would still be maintained.

Councillor Aaron Regisford asked about the extent to which the number of applications going to committee would change. Ms. Dawson predicted a significant shift, estimating that probably 90% of those applications that are coming through would no longer be heard for us because they currently fall into the category of minor householder applications that will now be officer-determined, often due to exceeding the threshold for objections.

Councillor Erheriene also asked for more detail on what constituted a more significant application under Schedule 2. Ms. Dawson clarified that these would be applications larger than nine homes on a site, and that even these would be officer decisions unless both the officer and a nominated member agreed to refer them to committee. She also highlighted that within London, the Mayor of London's power to call in applications would still apply to Schedule 2 applications.

Regarding training, Councillor Matejka asked about mandatory training or certification. Ms. Dawson confirmed that mandatory training is not part of the current regulations but may be introduced later. She noted that Lewisham already provides planning committee training to its councillors.

Councillor Aaron Regisford questioned the government's motivation for introducing this legislation, asking if it was due to local government being obstructive. Ms. Dawson candidly responded that the government believes members of the public are obstructive, citing NIMBYism as a factor contributing to housing delivery delays.

Councillor Ruth Persian asked if Lewisham Council had responded to the government's consultation on these reforms and if those responses could be shared. Councillor Rotimi Skyers, Chair of the committee, agreed to look into this and send any responses to Councillor Persian.

The committee was informed that the final regulations were expected in July, with a commencement date of 31 October 2026, leaving a short implementation window. A further report detailing the necessary amendments to the council's constitution, including potential changes to the scheme of delegation, committee referral arrangements, and committee structure, would be presented to a future meeting. It was anticipated that the council might reduce its three planning committees to one planning committee and one strategic planning committee.

The Governance Committee recommended noting the government's response to planning committee reform and that the Monitoring Officer would bring a further report with specific constitutional amendments. The recommendations were agreed. The committee also agreed to move the discussion of its work programme to the next meeting, scheduled for 10 September 2026.