A recent letter from the government Department of Housing and Communities supports R4U’s own analysis that the planning function at Uttlesford District Council was underperforming under the previous administration and required the significant re-engineering that is currently underway at the authority being driven by the local residents’ party.
John Evans (R4U)Cllr Evans continued “This letter is in line with the independent report that our own administration commissioned from Local Government Association earlier this year. That report recommended major changes and significant improvements to planning leadership, operating procedures and practices. Our administration has been acting quickly on those recommendations and many changes are already well underway.”
Cllr Evans concluded “The previous Conservative administration significantly let down residents in how they dealt with planning issues. They ignored their own independent consultant recommendation for improvement in 2018. That failure allowed the planning capability that they were responsible for at UDC to deteriorate even further. We are pleased to have made significant progress already in re-engineering the planning capability, and will continue to do so until it is fixed, working with the newly hired chief executive and his officer team. We look forward to reporting the council’s progress to both the Department for Housing and Communities and residents.”