Council newspaper blunder forces planning delay

A council has been forced to defer two planning applications after a consultation notice was published in the wrong newspaper.

The error by North Northamptonshire Council (NNC) affected an application in Oundle for upgrades to a rugby pitch and a separate proposal to build five holiday lets along the south eastern boundary of the Lilford Hall Estate.

Both plans were due to be decided at a meeting of the council's planning committee on Wednesday, where officers had recommended approval.

During the meeting, councillors were told the statutory notice had been placed in the Kettering Evening Telegraph, a paper not circulated in Oundle.

Speaking at the meeting, Cllr John Wade, mayor of Oundle Town Council, said: "We are not opposed to the rugby club or its ambitions. Our concerns with their planning application are around poor process, inadequate parking, and development creep.

"That is not just a technicality, it undermines a key safeguard for residents, many of whom only became aware of the proposal late in the process.

"That failure alone should give councillors serious pause, especially given the Hooke Close case in Corby."

This refers to a previous planning error in which the council consulted the wrong street over a warehouse application, placing the site notice about half a mile from the correct location due to a mix up involving another Weetabix site.

Council reports for both current proposals confirmed the advertising had been placed only in the Kettering Evening Telegraph.

After pausing the meeting to check records, officers apologised for what they described as an "administrative error" and told members they believed the notices should have been published in the Peterborough Telegraph instead.

They said they were unable to confirm whether the correct newspaper had been used and changed their recommendation to deferral so the consultation process could be carried out properly.

Both applications were unanimously deferred by the planning committee to ensure a full consultation is undertaken.

It is not yet clear when the plans will return to committee for a decision.

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