DD004 - Funding for Ealing Council Planning

1.1 OPDC is the planning authority for its area and all planning applications within the 
boundary of OPDC must be submitted to OPDC in the first instance.

1.2 The Localism Act 2011 allows for certain planning functions to be carried out by the 
host boroughs on OPDC's behalf.

1.3 OPDC adopted Schemes of Delegation for Planning Functions for the London 
Boroughs of Brent and Ealing on OPDC’s inception in April 2015. There is no 
scheme of delegation in place with Hammersmith and Fulham. The schemes 
provided for the delegation of certain planning applications within defined 
geographical areas, with different thresholds in place for Old Oak, Park Royal and 
North Acton and were agreed with the borough concerned.

2.1 Following discussions with Ealing Council, it requested that OPDC retain all new 
applications within its boundary for its own determination. The case for making this
change reflects the shift in OPDC’s regeneration strategy from Old Oak North to 
Old Oak West, which is predominantly in Ealing.

2.2 OPDC planning officer reported the amendments to the Scheme of Delegation with 
Ealing Council to the OPDC Planning Committee in November 2023 with the new 
arrangement taking effect from 1 April 2024. 

2.3 Under the revised Scheme of Delegation, the only applications which OPDC 
continues to delegate are applications to amend or discharge conditions on 
planning permissions which were previously granted by Ealing under the previous 
Scheme of Delegation.

2.4 To compensate for the loss of fee income, and in recognition of the Council’s 
desire to comment on applications, expenditure of £285,000 was agreed to 
reimburse Ealing Council for the time officers spend on their involvement in 
planning applications in the OPDC area of Ealing.

2.5 To be split as follows:
£60,000 in 2024/25
£55,000 in 2025/26
£50,000 in 2026/27
£45,000 in 2027/28
£40,000 in 2028/29
£35,000 in 2029/30

3.1 To enable Ealing Council to properly resource the provision of comments on 
planning applications in Ealing in the OPDC area

4.1 The proposed expenditure will facilitate the delivery of OPDC’s statutory planning 
function.

4.2 It will help foster the values of collaboration and stewardship through enabling the 
properly resourced contribution of one of our host boroughs.

5.1 Regular meetings are held with Ealing Council including the Ealing Programme 
Board and regular catch-ups between senior officers in the respective planning 
teams.

6,1 There is a risk that Ealing Council do not provide timely comments and input on 
planning applications however this risk is mitigated through the series of regular 
meetings with Ealing Council senior planning staff.

7.1 Under Section 149 of the Equality Act 2010, as a public authority, OPDC must 
have ‘due regard’ to the need to eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and 
victimisation as well as to the need to advance equality of opportunity and foster 
good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and those who 
do not.

7.2 The protected characteristics and groups are: age, disability, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, race, gender, religion or belief, sexual orientation and marriage/ civil partnership status. Fulfilling this duty involves having due regard to: the need to remove or minimise any disadvantage suffered by those who share a protected characteristic or one that is connected to that characteristic; taking steps to meet the different needs of such people; and encouraging them to participate in public life or in any other activity where their participation is disproportionately low. Compliance with the Equality Act may involve treating people with a protected characteristic more favourably than those without the characteristic. The duty must be exercised with an open mind and at the time a Decision is taken in the exercise of the OPDC’s functions

7.3 Enabling the properly resourced contribution of one of our host boroughs will 
positively impact on equality, diversity and inclusion through the application of their 
detailed local knowledge.

8.1 Enabling the properly resourced contribution of one of our host boroughs will assist 
in delivering social value through the application of their detailed local knowledge.

9.1 There are no conflicts of interest.

10.1 Expenditure of £285,000 from 2024/25 through to 2029/30 to Ealing Council, to be 
met from the Planning DM budget.

10.2 Any further expenditure is subject to the Corporation’s decision-making process

11.1 This report indicates that the decision requested of the Chief Executive Officer falls 
with the OPDC’s object of securing the regeneration of the Old Oak and Park 
Royal area and its powers to do anything it considers appropriate for the purpose 
of its objects or purposes incidental to those purposes, as set out in the Localism 
Act 2011. 

11.2 In taking the decisions requested, the Chief Executive Officer must have due 
regard to the Public Sector Equality Duty, namely the need to eliminate 
discrimination, harassment, victimisation and any other conduct prohibited by the 
Equality Act 2010, and to advance equality of opportunity between persons who 
share a relevant protected characteristic (race, disability, gender, age, sexual 
orientation, religion or belief, pregnancy and maternity and gender reassignment) 
and persons who do not share it and foster good relations between persons who 
share a relevant protected characteristic and persons who do not share it (section 
149 of the Equality Act 2010).