We have had feedback that applicants may need to explain sensitive personal reasons for a planning proposal, for example a disability, medical condition or other personal circumstance that helps justify why the work is needed.
Planners may need to see this information to assess the application fairly. For example, it may help explain why a proposed householder adaptation is needed.
Current situation
The concern is that current forms may not give applicants a clear, safe place to provide this information. If there is no dedicated route, applicants may put sensitive information into general free-text fields. That makes it harder to handle consistently and creates a risk that information which should not be public is later included on the public register.
This is not only a redaction question. Redaction is one consequence. The first question is whether the specification and forms should provide a clearer way for applicants to supply sensitive context where it is relevant to assessment.
User need / requirement
Suggested user need:
As an applicant who needs to explain a sensitive reason, for example a disability or medical condition, to justify my planning proposal, I need a clear, safe way to provide this explanation that planners will see and can take into account, but which is never made public, so that my application can be assessed fairly without exposing my private personal or medical information on the public register.
Further evidence needed
Questions for feedback:
- Does this need exist in practice?
- Which application types or current form sections does it affect?
- Do we have examples of how applicants currently provide this information?
- Do planning officers need this information as part of assessment, or validation as well?
- If needed, should this be a dedicated field or section, or handled through guidance on existing fields?
- How should the specification make clear that this information is for assessment but should not be published?
If there is evidence this need exists, the next step would be to develop a proposal and discuss with the DM policy to decide whether this should become a requirement in the forms / specification.
We have had feedback that applicants may need to explain sensitive personal reasons for a planning proposal, for example a disability, medical condition or other personal circumstance that helps justify why the work is needed.
Planners may need to see this information to assess the application fairly. For example, it may help explain why a proposed householder adaptation is needed.
Current situation
The concern is that current forms may not give applicants a clear, safe place to provide this information. If there is no dedicated route, applicants may put sensitive information into general free-text fields. That makes it harder to handle consistently and creates a risk that information which should not be public is later included on the public register.
This is not only a redaction question. Redaction is one consequence. The first question is whether the specification and forms should provide a clearer way for applicants to supply sensitive context where it is relevant to assessment.
User need / requirement
Suggested user need:
Further evidence needed
Questions for feedback:
If there is evidence this need exists, the next step would be to develop a proposal and discuss with the DM policy to decide whether this should become a requirement in the forms / specification.