Rutland residents are urged to tell the county council how it should 'engage' with them about planning issues.

The council has issued a document called a Statement of Community Involvement on which it will start seeking feedback on from tomorrow (Friday).

Rutland's Statement of Community Involvement (SCI) was last updated in 2014. There have since been a number of changes to the UK's national planning system which mean the document should be reviewed and updated.

The council says a review is also needed to account for the impact that COVID-19 has had on normal planning processes throughout the UK.

All of this means that Rutland County Council must update its SCI so it can continue to determine planning applications, support the development of Neighbourhood Plans for individual areas and make progress on its Local Plan Review.

Coun Gordon Brown, Cabinet Member for Planning, said:"The government has made clear that our national planning system has a vital role to play in supporting the UK's economic recovery after COVID-19.

"However, COVID-19 itself has had a direct impact on our statutory planning functions. In particular, the virus has affected our ability to make printed documents available to the public, arrange meetings and accept written representations.

"So that the planning process can continue to function at a local level, we are required by government to update our Statement of Community Involvement, which is the document that informs all our community engagement on planning matters.

"It's important that the planning system continues to operate effectively, ensuring that all those involved – local authorities, the Planning Inspectorate, developers, statutory consultees, local communities and others – can participate while adhering to guidance on social distancing."

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) announced last month that local planning authorities should carry out an immediate review of their SCI if they cannot comply with current policies due to COVID-19 safety guidelines.

Rutland County Council's Growth, Infrastructure and Resources Scrutiny Panel met last Thursday (June 11) to comment on a draft review of the Council's Statement of Community Involvement, before it was approved for consultation by Cabinet on Tuesday (June 16).

There is no legal requirement to consult on the SCI. However, Rutland County Council has committed to publishing its draft SCI, inviting feedback from local communities over a four-week period.

The informal consultation on the revised SCI will run from Friday 19 June to Friday 17 July 2020. Full details of how to take part will be made available at: www.rutland.gov.uk/sci.

Coun Brown added: "Changes need to be made to Rutland's SCI which will enable the planning process to continue with a focus on electronic and web-based formats, as recommended by the government.

"This is while there are significant limitations on access, movement and face-to-face contact, which make the current provisions in our SCI impossible to implement. We welcome people's feedback on these changes."

The full agenda and reports for Cabinet on Tuesday 16 June can be viewed online at: www.rutland.gov.uk/meetings.

Minutes from the meeting will be published online within the next seven days.