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Planning rules ‘not enforced’
Dept in a ‘state of chaos’
THERE is an endangered species on our streets that is rarely seen: the planning enforcement officer.
This is the warning from Camden’s conservation groups who claim that the council’s planning department is too swamped by cases to deal with a backlog of work.
A cross-party panel of councillors were this week told that planning rules were being breached as a result of the deluge in applications going unchecked.
Residents groups listed a series of concerns, including:
• A perceived lack of action by enforcement teams
• Lack of awareness of enforcement policy
• A lack of confidence in the training and competency levels of frontline staff
• Residents having to spot possible breaches in their area themselves.
The council’s own assessment of the service, presented in a report to the culture and environment scrutiny panel, acknowledged staff were over-run and recognised the need for more managerial staff in the department. But yesterday (Wednesday) officials insisted changes to the department had proved helpful.
This was in contrast to the views of conservation groups.
Caroline Hill, of Kentish Town Road Action, said the enforcement department had been “in a state of chaos” for a long time.
In Covent Garden, there is a “massive backlog” of outstanding cases and no sign of the enforcement team, according to Jo Weir of the Covent Garden Community Association.
In Fitzrovia, the backlog is “getting bigger and bigger,” said Max Neufeld of the Charlotte Street Association, and currently stands at 60 cases.
Pam White, of the Primrose Hill Conservation Advisory Committee, added that the option to grant developers retrospective planning permission after they had committed a breach of the planning law was also a source of discontent.
A Camden Council spokeswoman said: “Overall the changes introduced to the planning and public protection division have been put in place effectively and have generally improved the service customers receive.
“However, we always monitor any new arrangements carefully and we are already carrying out additional work to further improve the service.” |
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