Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Nikki Lloyd and Bill Hartnett.

To invite Councillors to declare any Disclosable Pecuniary Interests and / or Other Disclosable Interests they may have in items on the agenda, and to confirm the nature of those interests.

There were no declarations of interest.

The minutes of the Planning Committee meeting held on 13^th August 2026 were presented to Members and it was:

RESOLVED that

the minutes of the Planning Committee meeting held on 13^th August 2026 were approved as a true and accurate record and were signed by the Chair.

To note Update Reports (if any) for the Planning Applications to be considered at the meeting (circulated prior to the commencement of the meeting)

At the invitation of the Chair, Officers detailed that there were no updates for the application on the agenda, however, Members were informed that a new version of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) had been published in August 2026. The revised NPPF (2026) had come into immediate effect and was a material consideration in planning decision making. Officers assured Member that reports were now being brought to the committee having had regard to this new version of the NPPF.

This application was reported to Planning Committee for determination because the application was a Section 73 (S73) application concerning a major development recommended for approval. As such the application fell outside the Scheme of Delegation to Officers.

Officers presented the report and in doing so, drew Members’ attention to the presentation slides on pages 5 to 13 of the Site Plans and Presentations pack.

The application was for Claybrook Business Park, Claybrook Drive, Redditch, B98 0FH and sought the Variation of Conditions 2 and 14 attached to the planning permission 24/00639/FUL previously approved by the Planning Committee on 11^th October 2024.

The alteration to Condition 2 was to replace the drawings with revised new versions which included some minor amendments to the fenestration of some of the Units. This included the position and addition of windows in relation to units 1,2 and 5 only. No other units were proposed to be amended as part of the S73 application.

The alteration to Condition 14 was a variation of the use class for Units 1 and 2 from Use Class E to Use Class E(g)(ii) research and development and F1(a) Education use. The Use Class change was only for units 1 and 2 and no other unit would be affected.

Officers clarified that although the changes were minor in nature, as the proposal was a variation to a major Planning application it fell outside the current Scheme of Delegation to Officers, therefore, the S73 application needed to be determined by Members.

No other changes were proposed which included site access, parking, or fenestration/ Class Use of units outside of those detailed in the preamble above. No objections were received from consultees nor members of the public following statutory publicity, Officers therefore recommended approval.

At the invitation of the Chair, Gary Phillips of Highbury Designs, spoke on behalf of the applicant in favour of the application.

Members commented that the proposed changes were in line with the current Class Use but appreciated that they were not covered under the original application. Additionally, Members stated that it would allow the occupation of the units which would give employment opportunities to the Borough and could also stimulate interest in the local area for similar companies. Furthermore, Members spoke positively of the proposed tenant who was looking to occupy units 1 and 2 and noted that they were a leading company within their field.

Members saw no reason to refuse the application and therefore, on being put to the vote it was:

RESOLVED that

having had regard to the development plan and to all other material considerations, planning permission be GRANTED subject to conditions as detailed on page 16 of the Public Reports pack.