England's New National Scheme of Delegation Takes Effect on 31 October 2026, Sending Most Planning Decisions to Officers

England's planning system is about to undergo one of its most consequential procedural changes in years. On 1 June 2026 the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government laid draft regulations and published statutory guidance confirming that a National Scheme of Delegation will take effect on 31 October 2026, standardising how councils decide which planning applications go to officers and which reach committee. For developers, landowners and investors, the reform promises a more predictable route to decision, but it also raises the stakes on getting an application right first time. ## What is changing

Until now, each local authority has set its own rules on when planning decisions are taken by committee rather than delegated to officers. The new scheme replaces that patchwork with a single national framework.

The guidance sets out a two-tier structure, with certain categories of application to be determined by officers in all circumstances, and committees intended to concentrate on major or genuinely significant matters rather than revisiting routine cases.

• • Introduced through Sections 319ZZC to 319ZZF of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, inserted by the Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025.
• • Implemented via the Town and Country Planning (Discharge of Local Planning Authority Functions) (England) Regulations 2026.
• • Development corporations, National Park Authorities and the Broads Authority are among the limited exceptions.

The National Scheme of Delegation of Planning Functions, and associated rules on the size of planning committees, is due to come into force in England on 31 October 2026.

Savills, 2026

How decisions will be handled

Under the guidance, routine and policy-compliant applications are expected to stay out of committee, councillor call-ins are curtailed, and committees are intended to focus only on genuinely significant or contentious applications.

Each authority must designate gatekeepers, typically a senior planning officer and a nominated committee member, to decide jointly whether eligible cases should be referred to committee. Planning committees are also capped at a maximum of 13 members, with smaller committees encouraged.

Why it matters for investors and developers

For applicants, the intention is greater certainty and consistency across England by reducing local variation in how similar applications are dealt with, and by narrowing the scope for committee referral, ward member call-in or objection-number triggers.

There is a compliance dimension too. MHCLG has warned that if councils continue sending applications to committee contrary to the regulations after they take effect, those decisions may be vulnerable to judicial review and potentially quashed, so authorities are being urged to update their constitutions well ahead of the deadline.

The National Scheme of Delegation sits alongside a wider programme of planning reform now working its way through the system, from the awaited revised National Planning Policy Framework to local government reorganisation. Together they point to a more officer-led, delivery-focused planning landscape in England. Silkwood Group will continue to track how these changes shape the pipeline of new homes across the UK.

Sources

• • Savills, How the National Scheme of Delegation will change decision making
• • GOV.UK, Planning Committees and the National Scheme of Delegation of Planning Functions: Guidance for local planning authorities in England
• • Freeths, A new era for planning decisions: The National Scheme of Delegation explained