A decision to approve a planning application may be subject to the applicant entering into a section 106 planning obligation. This will set out a number of on-site and/or financial obligations that are necessary to make the proposal acceptable in planning terms.
The Council will seek to make the applicant aware of the need to enter into a planning obligation as soon as it is known one will be required. Notwithstanding this the drafting of a section 106 planning obligation can often take a while and can result in a delay in the granting of a planning approval. In an effort to reduce the delay in drafting the section 106 agreement the Council are currently finalising a standard section 106 agreement that can be used a starting point for negotiating the content of the agreement.
Viability Assessments
If it is considered that the financial viability of a planning proposal would be prejudiced by certain planning obligations, the applicant is required to demonstrate this through a robust assessment of the scheme’s economic viability. This will be independently appraised by the Council’s retained viability consultants at a cost to the applicant. Viability assessments submitted by the developer in support of the removal or the reduction of planning obligations will be published in full on the Council’s website, unless exceptional circumstances are justified by the developer and agreed by the Council. This will also apply to any appraisal of viability assessments undertaken by the Council’s retained viability consultants.
In the exceptional circumstances where it is agreed not to publish the viability assessment, the developer shall be asked to produce two versions of the report, namely one containing agreed commercially sensitive information but not available for public inspection, and a second version of the report with the agreed commercially sensitive information excluded for public inspection. In this regard, the Council’s retained viability consultant, in appraising commercially sensitive information, will similarly need to produce two versions of the report (at a cost to the applicant).
Planning Obligations Monitoring and Legal Fees
Ensuring that the provisions of a section 106 planning obligation are being implemented fully, correctly and on time can significant resource implications for the Council. To assist with this the Council will be employing a section 106 monitoring officer to undertake this work. This will be funded through the implementation of a section 106 monitoring fee attached to each agreement. This is allowed through the recent section 106 regulations.
The fees that the Council will apply to each section 106 planning obligation are as follows:
The higher of:
£1000 or
|
Full application |
15% of the planning application fee |
|
Outline application |
30% of the planning application fee |
This is in addition, and separate, to the legal fees that are applied to the legal agreement. The legal fees involved depend on the size of the proposal and whether the applicant has planning performance agreement (PPA) in place which requires an expedited agreement. The current legal fees for 2019/20 are:
|
|
Without a PPA |
With a PPA |
|
Band 1: Residential Development where units known (0-50 houses) / Non-residential development: (0- 5,000m2 floorspace) / Development where units or floorspace not known Up to 2.5ha site area). |
£1,806 |
£3,011 |
|
Band 2: Residential Development where units known (51-100 houses) / Non-residential development: (5,001 m2 - 100,000m2 floorspace) / Development where units or floorspace not known 2.5+ha - 5.0ha site area). |
£2,721 |
£4,516 |
|
Band 3: Residential Development where units known (101 houses+) / Non-residential development: (100,001m2 + floorspace) Development where units or floorspace not known 5ha+site area). |
£4,829 |
£7,237 |
| Band 4: Residential Development where units known (501 houses+) / Non-residential development: (500,001m2 + floorspace) Development where units or floorspace not known 25ha+site area). | £12,066 |
| Deed of Variation (S106 agreement) | £602 |
*Note these amounts are subject to review and may change in May 2024.