Report criticises consultation on County Derry planning application

A report into community engagement processes across Northern Ireland's planning authorities has criticised the consultation process on a disputed County Derry planning application.

In mid-2018, Mid Ulster District Council (MUDC) submitted two applications to develop the Former Maghera High School site as a business park.

An initial Pre-Application Community Consultation (PACC) showed 76% were opposed to the development, with 1,334 letters of objection also received as part of the process.

In 2019, campaign group Maghera Park Action Group (MPAG) submitted a successful request to the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) to call in the application.

They said there was a conflict of interest given the Council was both proposing and deciding on the application.

A new application for the proposed development was submitted by MUDC in June 2021, with a consultation report noting the Council's acquisition of nearby land to be used as public parkland.

The report also acknowledged a proposed walkway had been re-introduced, and there was an indication some trees would be retained. DfI are still considering the proposal.

However, a report carried out by the Northern Ireland Open Government Network (NIOGN) has highlighted a number of issues with the consultation processes used.

A 'failure to consult prior to making key decisions' was identified by the report, citing a 2013 change from the Council's original intention to use the site for 'recreational purposes' to 'economic development purposes'.

Members of the public have been using the  site as a park in recent years.

“Yet the first the wider community became aware of any proposed development was with the neighbour notifications advising of the forthcoming applications in June 2018, once the formal process had begun,” said the report.

“In contrast, the Economic Development Department within Mid Ulster District Council actively engaged in conversation with the business community regarding the site before progressing the plan to PACC stage.”

The report also said the process had led to an 'endless cycle of consultation and re-consultation', which they said was a 'drain on time and resources for all involved'.

“Throughout this process new proposals were significantly changed with each new consultation while the inputs to previous consultations were overlooked,” said the report.

A failure to call in the application despite a 'clear conflict of interest' was also criticised by the NIOGN.

“Perhaps the most glaring question of all with regards to the proposed business park is why the application was not called in earlier by the Department for Infrastructure,” it said.

“It was only when the MPAG, through the services of a legal firm and at considerable cost, referred the matter to the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) in 2019, that the matter was definitively called-in.

“A representative of Mid Ulster District Council’s planning department acknowledged that this was ultimately the right decision as it protects the council from any accusations of conflict of interest.”

Overall, the report said the planning systems across Northern Ireland were an example of a 'litigious and technocratic system driven by economic interests'.

“While the system may be adequate for rubber stamping the majority of non-controversial developments, it has proven wholly unable to cope when there is significant opposition from the community,” said the report.

“Where such opposition has led to change, this has usually been because of external political intervention and has been achieved despite - rather than thanks to - any engagement through the formal planning system.”

The report makes a number of recommendations, including a requirement for community representatives to be involved in Pre-Application Discussions (PADs) and 'independent, third-party facilitation' of PACCs.

A spokesperson for MPAG said they hoped the issues raised in the report would be addressed across all council areas.

“The report confirms that consultation with local communities happens routinely once all major decisions are made,” they said.

“On the future of our beautiful High School site, it was an afterthought by Mid Ulster Council once their well-advanced development plans were agreed.

Nature's advance and the business case: Can compromise be found at Maghera High School?

The site is at the centre of a long-running campaign to build a park in the face of the council's economic plans.

Liam Tunney takes a look inside the site that has left some businesses caught in the centre of a dispute between the local council and an environmental campaign group.

“The requirement by the Planning Department that a PACC be carried out as part of the process meant any engagement with the community was less of a consultation and more of a presentation.

“Obviously it is disappointing that Mid Ulster Council have sought to ignore the very real community response to their plans.

“That a community once geographically and politically divided have come together with a vision for their town; one that could protect our natural environment and support our population, families and individuals, now and into the future.”

“It is surely better that experience of engagement informs future best practice and major developments include community vision over Council imposition.”

The group added that they had submitted a Freedom of Information (FOI) request for access to a report compiled on the Council's plans for nearby land at Mullagh Road.

A spokesperson for Mid Ulster District Council said they viewed the report as a 'missed opportunity'.

“The Council is disappointed with the standard of the NIOGN report, both in terms of the balance and rigour of its research methodology, and its lack of understanding of the planning system,” they said.

“Furthermore, the inclusion of the specific Mid Ulster case study chosen is imprudent, as the application referred to is still under consideration.”