Our Services
Local Government

The tier of local government below local authorities – parish and town councils – plays an important role which is growing with the changing planning system. If you are involved in one of the 10,000 of these councils in England and Wales, we can provide you with the following support and advice:

Parish and town councils
Parish and town councils have always played an important role in the planning process. As statutory consultees, they have a right to respond to all planning applications within their jurisdiction as well as to provide and maintain a host of local facilities including community centres, parks and allotments. They also have the power to acquire and dispose of land. But the new Localism agenda is creating new planning powers for parish and town councils that could radically change their influence on the future of their communities. Navigus Planning provides support to these councils in dealing with all planning and related matters. This is commonly:

• Providing updates on developments and changes to the planning system and implications for councils, particularly Localism
• Developing neighbourhood plans
• Making representations on individual planning applications, including S106 negotiations
• Making representations on Local Development Frameworks and other local and national consultations of relevance
• Providing advice on accessing grants and other funding for developing neighbourhood plans and delivering community facilities

Parish and District Councillors
The key players at the parish and local authority level are the councillors. Local authority councillors are provided with rudimentary training about the planning system but parish councillors are often given little or no assistance. Both groups would benefit from a greater understanding of the planning system and how it relates to key issues affecting their responsibilities. If you are one of these councillors (or even if you are not and simply want to know more generally about the planning system), we can provide the following support:

• Presentations and discussions on all aspects of planning as well as the latest developments in national policy and guidance
• Workshops to explore particular aspects of planning in-depth and to look at case studies from across the UK.