Rochdale Planning Goes Online

Date published: 27/05/2005

Applying for planning permission has just got easier in Rochdale. Applications can now be made online, from the comfort of your own home. The new service allows customers to create, submit and pay for a planning application in a safe and secure online process. This can cover anything from building an extension to your home to building factories or warehouses.

The service calculates the fee automatically and can even receive all the documents associated with the application electronically.  It is another milestone in moves to make as many of Rochdale Council's services as possible available online.

Head of Planning & Regulation Service, Ken Smith said, "This will make the service even easier to use. It will also speed up the process of dealing with applications."

The next phase, which is being worked on over the coming months, will place a copy of every new application online. Anyone with an interest can view applications online by typing in the address and looking at the results as either a list of matching applications or on a map on your own computer.

Applicants can also check progress on their application from their home or nearest computer terminal. Ken Smith added, "Local people can access the service from our reception points, and it helps staff to find land-based data online much more easily. Our performance in the planning service is improving at a time when numbers of applications are the highest for years. Investment in IT is helping us make the very best use of resources."

Details of how to submit your application can be found at www.rochdale.gov.uk