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England’s new national scheme of delegation came into force on 31 October 2026. It changes how councils decide whether a planning application is determined by a planning officer or a planning committee. For homeowners and developers, the important point is that officer decisions remain the default—even for applications in Schedule 2.
Schedule 1 applications must be decided by officers. Schedule 2 applications can go to committee only through the referral process. Being in Schedule 2 does not automatically mean a committee meeting.
This guide explains the main categories, the exceptions that can change an application’s route and what the reform could mean for your project. It reflects the 2026 Regulations and the government’s statutory guidance.
THE NEW DECISION ROUTES · ENGLAND
In force from 31 October 2026. Officer decisions are the default.
The nominated officer and nominated member must agree to referral and identify a qualifying significant local issue or planning matter.
Selected examples, not exhaustive lists. Legal definitions and exceptions apply. Own-interest applications follow separate rules; linked listed-building and retrospective cases may change the route. Sources: SI 2026/854 and government statutory guidance.
A delegated decision is a decision made by an authorised council officer. A committee decision is made by elected members sitting on a planning committee or sub-committee. The new scheme establishes national rules for allocating specified planning functions between them.
The aim is greater consistency: committees should focus on significant proposals, while officers handle more routine and technical decisions. The scheme concerns who decides an application. It does not itself grant planning permission or remove the need to assess a proposal against the relevant requirements.
The rules apply to relevant local planning authorities in England. They are not a UK-wide reform, and certain bodies, including National Park authorities and the Broads Authority, are outside this scheme. Planning functions not listed in either schedule remain subject to local arrangements.
Subject to the statutory exceptions, Schedule 1 covers householder applications, minor commercial applications and qualifying minor residential applications. It also includes several technical approvals and certificates.
For an ordinary Schedule 1 application, a councillor’s request or a specified number of objections cannot require committee determination. The council must still have appropriate arrangements authorising its officers to make decisions.
Schedule 2 includes planning permission applications outside the householder, minor commercial and minor residential categories. It also includes listed building consent, variation or discharge of listed building consent conditions, retrospective planning applications under section 73A, advertisement consent and consent for works under tree preservation orders.
Some reserved matters and section 73 applications also fall here. For reserved matters, a large outline permission means one permitting at least 500 dwellings or buildings creating at least 50,000 square metres of floorspace. The classification refers to the outline permission, rather than simply the size of an individual reserved matters submission.
Unless properly referred, a Schedule 2 application must be determined by an officer. Councils are not required to put every Schedule 2 application through a committee-referral assessment.
For a Schedule 2 application to be referred, the nominated officer and nominated member must agree. They must consider that the application raises at least one of the following:
Government guidance identifies the Chief Planning Officer or equivalent as the appropriate nominated officer, and the committee chair or equivalent as the nominated member, with cover arrangements where necessary. If they do not agree to referral, the application remains for officer determination.
The council should record the referral cases considered, their outcomes and reasons, report these regularly to the committee and make the information available on its website.
An application under section 73A for development already carried out falls into Schedule 2, even where the scale of the works would otherwise suggest a householder or minor application. That makes committee referral possible under the test; it does not make it compulsory. If works have already started, our retrospective planning application service can help assess the appropriate next steps.
A planning permission application that the authority considers connected with listed building consent, or variation or discharge of its conditions, can fall into Schedule 2 despite being small in scale. A certificate of lawfulness of proposed works to a listed building is different: that certificate is listed in Schedule 1.
Separate rules apply where an application is made by or on behalf of the authority, a member or an officer, or where the nominated officer and member consider that one of them otherwise has an interest. The nominated officer and member may agree to committee referral without the ordinary Schedule 2 significance test. If it is not referred, an officer decides it.
For some projects, avoiding the wait for a committee meeting could reduce delays. A clearer decision route may also make programme planning easier. However, the scheme does not guarantee quicker decisions, a particular determination date or a successful outcome.
As a practical matter, applicants still need a complete submission, appropriate drawings and evidence addressing the site’s planning issues. Outstanding technical questions can delay progress regardless of whether an officer or committee ultimately decides the application.
At Planning By Design, our advice is to establish the correct route early and build the planning case around the proposal’s merits. A delegated decision is not a substitute for a well-prepared application.
The Regulations came into force on 31 October 2026. This article is updated to 2 November 2026.
No. Schedule 2 allows referral where the required agreement and significance test are satisfied. Officer determination remains the default.
No. Under the national scheme, a numerical objection threshold cannot automatically require referral. Relevant planning concerns still need to be addressed; the decision route does not make them disappear.
No. It identifies the decision-maker, not the outcome. An officer can approve or refuse an application under the applicable requirements.
No. Those related to large outline permissions fall within Schedule 2. The threshold is at least 500 dwellings or at least 50,000 square metres of new floorspace in the outline permission.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. This is a general guide; the route for an individual application depends on its facts and the statutory definitions.
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