Mid Ulster Planning Team excellence recognised at RTPI Awards

Mid Ulster District Council’s Planning Team has been named as a finalist in the category for In House Planning Team of the Year at the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) Awards for Planning Excellence 2023.

The Council’s in house team were responsible for the design, development and implementation of its new planning portal, launched in June 2022, which for the first time provided an end-to-end digital service for anyone submitting or responding to a planning application in Mid Ulster and, when live was one of its kind among the eleven Councils in Northern Ireland.

The RTPI Awards for Planning Excellence are the most established and respected awards in the UK planning industry. Running for over 40 years, they celebrate exceptional examples of planning and the contribution planners make to society.

Mid Ulster District Council has an exceptional track record with the prestigious awards. In the last six years the Council has been named as a finalist four times and won its category once.

Chair of Mid Ulster District Council, Councillor Dominic Molloy has welcomed this latest accolade and is hopeful about the outcome.  

“The introduction of a standalone service was a milestone moment for the Council, as we moved to an entirely new digitally-led planning service. Feedback from our customers has shown that it has transformed how our residents use the service, bringing increased access, greater speed and for many agents, some significant cost reductions, while also ensuring that we as an organisation can work more efficiently and effectively, improving our service and, in particular, our processing times.

“With an ethos to put customer needs at the heart of the planning system, the in-house team delivered a streamlined and efficient digital online planning system. The smooth launch of Mid Ulster's Planning Portal was testament to their professionalism and hard work. To even be considered again as a finalist in these awards is a remarkable achievement for all concerned and I am hopeful that the past success achieved will be repeated in November, giving the team the recognition they deserve.”

The winners of the Awards will be announced in London on Tuesday, November 21. Mid Ulster District Council remains committed to continuous improvement and will be consulting with its customers over the next business year to see how further improvements can be made.