Planning Matters

Leeds City Council is the Local Planning Authority (LPA) for Walton and has a duty to notify the Parish Council of any planning applications relating to land in its area. The Parish Council considers the nature and suitability of each application and responds to the LPA with comments where appropriate. Applications are normally discussed at the Parish Council bi-monthly meetings which take place on the first Monday of the month.

Details are listed on the relevant agenda which can be viewed on this website or on the Parish Council notice board at least 3 days before the meeting takes place. This is the only opportunity where the Parish Council has a right to make a representation following receipt of a notification so it is important that views are made known at this stage.

While the Parish Council can discuss all applications affecting land in its area and is notified of the outcome of any application, Parish Councils have no special planning powers and Leeds City Council as LPA may or may not take account of their comments. Leeds City Council has a duty to publicise planning applications by notices displayed near the proposed site or by neighbour notification letters. In addition, plans and related documents are made available for viewing at various locations including Wetherby Library or by logging onto www.leeds.gov.uk/publicaccess.

Details of applications also appear in the Thursday edition of the Yorkshire Evening Post and in the Friday edition of the Wetherby News. There is a limited timescale for responding to applications so residents are advised to send their observations or objections to Leeds City Council Planning Department as soon as they receive notification. They can also inform their Ward Councillor of any objections sent and, if they wish to make their views known to the Parish Council before it sends its own comments to the City Council, write to the Clerk separately as soon as possible.

With all building work, the owner of the property or land in question is ultimately responsible for complying with the relevant planning rules and building regulations, regardless of the need to apply for planning permission and/or building regulations approval or not. Therefore, failure to comply with the relevant rules will result in the owner being liable for any remedial action which could go as far as demolition or restoration.

The general advice is to always discuss your proposals with Leeds City Council Planning Department and Building Control Service before starting work. The City Council can also advise on whether your proposed work lies within a conservation area.  

Useful Contacts Leeds City Council Planning Department, Leonardo Building, 2 Rossington Street, Leeds LS2 8HD Tel 0113 222 4409 http://www.leeds.gov.uk/council/Pages/Councillors-and-Committees.aspx