A council is to stop publishing notices in the local press detailing planned changes to houses, it has been announced.
Ipswich Borough Council says it has made the move in order to save what it estimates to be 150 hours of officer time and around £700 in processing costs each year.
The move will also see an end to such notices being posted in public, such as on lampposts in the vicinity of the home where the proposed amendments will take place.
Instead, neighbours to the affected property will be notified directly by letter as part of the required consultation period, prior to a decision on the application being made.
The council will continue to publish press and public notices for other types of planning applications it receives.
Brad Jones, pictured, editor of the East Anglian Daily Times and Ipswich Star, told HTFP: “Ipswich Borough Council states clearly in its proposed policy that it will continue to put planning notices in the press. However, small household applications like extensions or conservatories will now be excluded.
“We don’t believe this will result in a big reduction to the lists that are published. Larger applications, new builds etc. will still be there.
“But in all of those smaller cases, the council must be certain it is still engaging with people affected by the application.”
An Ipswich Borough Council spokesman said: “We want to adopt a simpler and more targeted consultation process when it comes to householder planning applications.
“We can make better use of resources by being more focused. All residents will be contacted about planning applications that affect them.”
Sign up for our free daily email bulletin
Follow HTFP on Twitter
Got a story? Email the Editor at
seems fair enough to me. One problem councils have is that newspapers reach far fewer readers than before, in some cases only 10 per cent of peak sales. They are probably better off sending letters.
Report this comment
With the EADT now selling a woeful 14,000 copies in a population in Ipswich alone of 133,000, the case for councils running not only these but all PNs in the local paper has gone.
At one time the paper was the go to medium for local news with a hefty daily sale but this is no longer the case, another 11% drop means the relevance to locals is dwindling fast with other forms of announcement being far more effective, if however Mr Jones wishes to offer the few buyers of the paper and local council a service why not publish all forms of public notices free?
It might even pick up a few casual sales for the two ailing Ipswich dailies
Report this comment