The Planning and Regulatory Committee of Worcestershire Council met on Wednesday 2 September 2026 to discuss and adopt a new national scheme for the delegation of planning decisions. The committee unanimously approved the adoption of the revised protocol, which aligns the council's procedures with new government regulations.

National Scheme of Delegation of Planning Decisions

The committee unanimously adopted a new protocol for the delegation of planning decisions to officers, in line with the mandatory requirements of the Town and Country Planning (Discharge of Local Planning Authority Functions) (England) Regulations 2026. This change, which must be implemented by 31 October 2026, aims to ensure greater clarity and consistency in how planning decisions are made.

Tom Pollock, Head of Commercial Law at the County Council, explained that the new regulations limit planning committees to a maximum of 13 members, a change already addressed by the council in July. The most significant change is the introduction of a mandatory national scheme of delegation, which dictates which applications must be determined by officers and which may be brought before a committee. Failure to comply with these regulations would leave the council open to legal challenges and judicial review.

The new protocol divides planning matters into three schedules:

• Schedule 1 applications must be determined by planning officers. These include minor commercial and residential applications, certificates of lawful uses, and non-material amendments to planning permissions.
• Schedule 2 applications may be determined by either officers or the committee. These encompass most significant minerals and waste applications, as well as other planning applications that are not householder, minor commercial, or minor residential. For these applications, there is a presumption that decisions will be delegated to officers unless both the nominated member (the Chair of the Planning and Regulatory Committee, Councillor Martin Allen, or the Vice-Chair, Councillor Mel Fordington) and the nominated officer (the Head of Planning and Transport Planning, Emily Barker, or the Development Management Team Manager) agree that the application meets a statutory gateway test. This test considers whether the application raises issues of economic, social, or environmental significance, or significant planning matters.
• Schedule 3 covers local delegations for matters not specified in the regulations, allowing the council to continue delegating certain functions such as planning enforcement and responses to environmental permit applications.

The report also outlined consequential amendments to the council's constitution, which will be recommended to Full Council. These include clarifying the Planning and Regulatory Committee's terms of reference to reflect the new officer delegation arrangements, updating the role descriptions for the Chair and Vice-Chair to include their nominated member status, and amending the Officer Scheme of Delegation to name the nominated officers.

During the discussion, several councillors expressed concerns about the perceived erosion of local democratic control, with Councillor Sam Evans stating, we as councillors are elected to make decisions about our area and I feel that we are having a lot of control stripped away from us. Councillor Jenny Shaw raised questions about the potential for increased responsibility on officers and the need for remuneration adjustments, as well as how the protocol would adapt to the upcoming local government reorganisation into a unitary authority. Councillor Chris McSweeny highlighted that the council was essentially obliged to adopt the scheme to avoid legal challenges, noting that the power has been taken out of our hands. Councillor Malcolm Victory echoed these sentiments, describing the situation as a closed up sack and our function here is effectively being determined against us. Councillor Mel Fordington, Vice-Chair of the committee, also voiced her disappointment, stating, I, I think we, we as councillors all campaign and stand to be elected, and I do believe we are trusted by our electorate, and most decisions will now be officer made.

Despite these concerns, the committee recognised the mandatory nature of the regulations. The recommendation to revoke the existing protocol, adopt the revised protocol, nominate members and officers, and recommend constitutional amendments to Full Council was carried unanimously. The committee also agreed that the protocol would be published on the council's website, with a commitment to transparency.