EAST Hampshire has been named the second-best performing council in Hampshire, with its planners excelling in both speed and quality of service.
According to government figures published for the year ending June 30, East Hampshire District Council came within the top 20 per cent of all 362 planning authorities in the UK for performance, and the planners are delighted.
According to head of planning control Ian Ellis, the performance of councils in determining planning applications is monitored by the government, which sets targets for deciding applications within 13 and eight weeks.
Since the published results, for the period July to September this year, East Hampshire planning control has continued to maintain an upward trend by exceeding its four targets for planning decisions as follows:
Major applications - 50 per cent of decisions made within 13 weeks, up from 33 per cent in June (target 45 per cent)
Minor applications - 68.3 per cent of decisions made within eight weeks, up from 57 per cent (target 65 per cent)
Other applications - 80 per cent of decisions within eight weeks, up from 73 per cent (target 80 per cent)
Overall 75.2 per cent of all decisions within eight weeks, up from 67.7 per cent (target 70 per cent)
Major applications include proposals for ten or more dwellings and commercial development over 1,000 sq metres. Minor applications include proposals for less than ten dwellings and commercial development under 1,000 square metres.
This achievement is against the background of a 26 per cent increase in planning applications compared to two years ago and, says Mr Ellis, Òreflects the drive of members and officers to provide a full, effective planning control service.Ó