Carmarthenshire County Council

Prospero Planning was appointed to act on behalf of Carmarthenshire County Council in September 2020 where there was a significant backlog of applications to handle due to various staff absences and rollout out of a new document management system. It all coincided with the challenges brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic including remote working and staff secondment to other council services.

The initial appointment at Carmarthenshire was for a period of six months with an option to extend the contract. The extension was exercised a few times, with a total of five of Prospero’s Associates flexing to ensure full support for the duration and continuity of cover.

In the early stages of the work, we cleared the backlog of older cases and as the contract developed, we went on to provide immediate support when one of the council’s in-house team resigned, taking on an existing case load and then being allocated new applications. Acting as an extension of the council’s team, Prospero picked up the entirety of the leaver’s workload, removing additional pressure from the rest of the team.

“The Council used Prospero Planning to assist in addressing a significant backlog of planning and related applications. We were under huge work pressure whilst seeking to respond to the findings of a Wales Audit Report. The support we had from Emma and the team was absolutely invaluable. They handled a significant number of applications on behalf of the Council in a very professional way and demonstrated a clear understanding of the Local Planning Authority context. I will certainly use Prospero again.”

Hugh Towns, Senior Development & Enforcement Manager