Public performance reports

The future development of the South Lanarkshire area is a key responsibility for the council. We ensure that development takes place in the right place, at the appropriate time, in a sustainable way and in the best interest of the public. Planning and Building Standards achieves this by preparing and monitoring development plans, considering planning and building warrant applications and, where appropriate, enforcing the relevant legislation.

Major developments – average number of weeks to decision - Target - 50 weeks

What this means
This indicator sets out the average time taken by the planning service to process planning applications for major developments.

Why this matters
This indicator measures the efficiency of our planning application process in processing major or national developments.

Our performance and how we compare

How we have performed in improving this public service
Several legacy cases were backlogged due to issues introduced by National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4), as well as due to preparation, negotiation and conclusion of S75 legal agreements, and the ongoing impact of Covid-19 led to a decrease in performance for major development applications.  A targeted approach to reducing legacy cases was introduced to address this, with such applications determined as a priority.

Local developments (householder) – average number of weeks to decision - Target - 7 weeks

What this means
This indicator sets out the average time taken by the Planning service to process the planning applications for householder developments.

Why this matters
This indicator measures the efficiency of the council’s planning application process for minor/householder developments. The Planning service has a statutory two-month period in which to deal with a local planning application.

Our performance and how we compare

How we have performed in improving this public service
Householders make up the majority of planning applications received. The improvement in average timescales is a direct result of resourcing new graduate planners who deal with most of these applications, as well as updating template reports of handling to create efficiencies in the process.  This has improved customer service and is supported by quality decision making and time management.

Local developments (non-householder) – average number of weeks to decision - Target – 11 weeks

What this means
This indicator sets out the average time taken by the Planning service to process the planning applications for local developments (non-householder).

Why this matters
This indicator measures the efficiency of the council’s planning application process.

Our performance and how we compare

How we have performed in improving this public service
The introduction of NPF4 brought more restrictive policies in relation to rural housing development and development of the greenbelt, which had a direct impact on the consideration and assessment of applications, with the majority of refusals (which would normally have been delegated decisions issued earlier in the process) progressing to committee, therefore leading to longer determination periods to align with committee dates.  This increase in time is also evident nationally, which demonstrates the impact on NPF4.

Business and industry – average number of weeks to decision - Target – 12 weeks

What this means
This indicator sets out the average time taken by the Planning service to process the planning applications for business and industry developments.

Why this matters
An efficient and well-functioning planning service plays an important role in facilitating sustainable economic growth and delivering high quality development in the right places. 

Our performance and how we compare

How we have performed in improving this public service
The average time for processing business/industrial planning applications in South Lanarkshire improved from 22.9 weeks in 2022-23 to 16 weeks for 2023-24. However, this remains higher (worse than) the Scottish average of 10.7 weeks. Several “legacy” applications were decided during this year, which impaired the overall processing times. There was significant turnover in staff during 2023-24 however, additional resources have been brought into the Planning Service, which will positively impact the processing of planning applications.

Number of breaches of planning legislation identified/resolved - no target set

What this means
The Planning service monitors the number of reports of potential breaches of planning legislation and the number of these cases that are resolved.  Where a breach of planning legislation is identified, the Planning service will attempt to respond to this without having to take formal action - either by having the owner agree to ‘undo’ the work or by asking them to submit a retrospective application for works which can be approved. 

Why this matters
The activity outlined below shows that the Planning service is using its enforcement powers to make sure that everyone stays within planning law and the conditions of their planning permission. 

Our performance and how we compare

How we have performed in improving this public service
The Planning Authority are improving in terms of the number of enforcement cases resolved, improving from 51% in 2021-22, 69% in 2022-23, to 96% in 2023-24. Area Development Management teams now deal with enforcement cases, and the enforcement charter has been updated, which sets out clear parameters for both customers and staff.

Percentage of building warrant applications receiving initial assessment within 20 working days - Target - 95%

What this means
A building warrant is a legal procedure that must be followed. This ensures that any proposed building work meets current building regulations. The following results show the percentage of applications assessed for compliance with building warrant regulation requirements within the 20-day target.

Why this matters
When our Building Standards service grants permission for work to be done, it issues a building warrant. This indicator shows how efficiently the Building Standards service administers the building warrant process, with the service aiming to reduce the average time it takes for customers to obtain a building warrant.

Our performance and how we compare

How we have performed in improving this public service
The figure for 2023-24 is below the target of 95%, however, we continue to strive to make service improvements.

South Lanarkshire Council Local Development Plan

South Lanarkshire Local Development Plan (LDP) is a statutory plan that guides the future use of land in the area within the council’s area. During 2023, preparation started on the third version (SLLDP3). The first stage involves the preparation of an Evidence Report, which will inform the spatial strategy for South Lanarkshire. It will be submitted to Scottish Ministers for a Gatecheck, following which preparation of the plan itself will begin. It is anticipated that it will be adopted by the council towards the end of 2027.

The Evidence report involves gathering extensive data and information covering 33 policy themes, including the location of new housing and employment, addressing the principles of local living so that everyone has appropriate access to local services and facilities. The Local Development Plan will also provide the land use planning context in reaction to wider themes around health and wellbeing, sustainable/active travel and tackling climate and nature emergencies. 

At the same time, extensive engagement has been carried out with our partners, local communities and interest groups to understand their needs and aspirations. This reflects the key role the planning system has in improving our local communities, tackling disadvantage, and promoting equality.

LDP3 will be a corporate document that draws together our aims and objectives and the future strategies of council services and our partners in a spatial context. We have contributed to other strategies, including the Local Transport Strategy and Local Housing Strategy.

Preparation of the first-stage evidence report requires extensive collaboration with other council services. This includes working in partnership with our community engagement team to help carry out meaningful engagement with local communities. This has already involved awareness raising with the four Community Planning Partnerships, individual community councils and local groups such as Burnhill Action Group, ONE CAN and Lanark Development Trust.

In addition, the Planning Service has engaged closely with representatives of the local Gypsy/Traveler community to better understand what engagement means to them and developing a guide on the planning system.

Planning performance statistics

In addition to the above, a range of other performance results in respect of planning applications are reported to the Scottish Government on a quarterly basis by our Planning service and can be viewed on the Scottish Government website. 

Resource Plans are prepared each year by all council Resources to outline the key developments they intend to take forward in the year. Performance and actions relating to economic development and regeneration can be found in the Community and Enterprise Resource Plan.

Twice a year, performance reports are presented to council committees on progress against the Resource Plans. In addition, reports detailing progress against the Council Plan Connect Outcomes are prepared. See Quarter 2 (September) and Quarter 4 (March - year end) performance reports for further information.

More information on our objectives can be found in the Council Plan Connect and also the Annual Performance Spotlights.

Local Government Benchmarking Framework (LGBF) allows councils to work together, to use performance information in a way that will help understand variations, share knowledge, expertise and good practice, with a view to making improvements. For more information and links relating to this framework go to the 'Benchmarking' paragraph on the Improvement and how we compare page on our website.

The information contained within this report reflects the position based on the data available at the time of publication (March 2025).