'Improvements' in planning department

THE leader of Hyndburn Council has praised its problem-plagued planning department for making 'significant improvements.

- BY BILL JACOBS Local Democracy Reporting Service

In January last year, Hyndburn Council had such a large backlog of applications that the government awarded it £100,000 to tackle the issue blamed on staff shortage and IT glitches.

But the authority's leader Coun Munsif Dad told its annual meeting last Thursday: "Over the past three years, the performance of Hyndburn Council's Development Management Service has seen significant improvements.

"Back in the 12 months leading to December 2022, just 44 per cent of major planning applications and 61 per cent of non-major applications were determined within statutory timeframes or agreed extensions.