Ceredigion-Powys Planning Departments Collaboration

Both Powys and Ceredigion Councils have agreed to look at ways they can collaborate presumably to improve performance and customer service. Both Councils have occupied very lowly positions in the league tables of performing authorities in Wales and some would say two wrongs doesn't make a right and that two of the worst performing authorities are unlikely to improve overnight. What has happened to benchmarking where the worst authorities learn from the best performers? The Councils hope to achieve more responsive, efficient and effective services and point to the need to standardise the validation processes associated with planning applications, enhancing electronic planning services, provision of more resilient and expert team of officers, eradication of duplication e.g. delivering of training and developing new procedures and potentially merging of planning policy teams and developing joint development plan policies.

It is true that both authorities have been criticised by agents and by applicants alike. Powys in particular is not a responsive authority - it is impossible to access advice or speak to an individual planner; they do not respond to messages left at the offices; they do not provide reliable advice. The web site and online public access over the internet is extremely poor. While plans are uploaded on the system and can be viewed online, the system is not user-friendly and is certainly not interactive - none of the consultation responses from statutory consultees are made public. Revised plans aren't placed on the web site and there is no sense of instant interaction - the information is that received at the time of registration.

We wait to see the report from the consultants but it is clear to agents working in the area that both Councils have fallen behind the time and act very much as backwater authorities who have failed to embrace modernisation.