Plea for reform after Derbyshire council misses out on £200,000 developer payments

A councillor is calling for reform in Government legislation after a local authority missed out on £200,000 of payments from developers whose companies folded before they could cough up the cash.
North East Derbyshire District Council headquartersNorth East Derbyshire District Council headquarters
North East Derbyshire District Council headquarters

Councillor Ross Shipman, who represents Tupton on North East Derbyshire District Council (NEDDC), says something needs to be done about the way Section 106 (S106) payments are collected.

The call comes following the news that the district council has been shorted by almost £200,000 in S106 payments – a legal agreement between authorities and developers to contribute to the community.

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“They really should be collecting this money up front,” Cllr Shipman said.

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He explained that planning authorities such as NEDDC usually have to wait until a proportion of houses are occupied before they can ask for their share of the payment, by which time development companies have often gone bust.

“The system is designed against planning authorities,” Cllr Shipman added.

In October, the Derbyshire Times reported that the council was pursuing court action against one company, which was denying liability for a S106 payment of £77,000 in relation to the Ridgeway Craft Centre, in Main Road, Ridgeway.

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Ridgeway Courtyard Ltd is named alongside Property Finance Nominees (No 3) Ltd on a deed of modification of Section 106 dated August 3rd, 2017, which relates to this planning application.

According to the Gov.uk website, Ridgeway Courtyard Ltd dissolved on October 12 this year.

NEDDC would not comment on whether it was still pursuing legal action.

It outlined that the point at which a S106 payment was taken was specific to each agreement.

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