36 Dean Lane Water Rossendale Lancashire BB4 9RA Data via plota.co.uk

2026/0263 - Proposed Certificate of Lawfulness Pending Consideration

Proposal

Construction of two of Natural Flood Management (NFM) interventions - a clay core earth bund and timber sluice to control water levels in an exsting lodge pool. These are designed to reduce flood risk to communities downstream by slowing the flow and attenuating water in the catchment above areas at flood risk. Three ?Communities at Risk of Flooding? will directly benefit from the scheme: Dean Lane, Forest Holme & Lumb, and Whitewell & Piercy, and additional benefits will contribute to wider peak flow reduction downstream on the River Irwell. This site forms part of a 'phase 2' extension of an existing NFM scheme comprised of three sites within the Whitewell Brook catchment which formed 'phase 1' , have already been granted Lawful Development Certificates in 2025 and were delivered over the last year (Peers Clough Farm, Far Bank End Farm and Hoyle Dean Farm). With these three sites complete, they are already delivering flood risk reduction and a host of co-benefits including habitat enhancement, increased biodiversity, improved water quality, carbon sequestration, maintenance of flows during drought periods and more. This additional site (alongside a separate application for an NFM scheme at Far Bank Top Farm), will extend the benefits of Phase 1 with additional interventions across this and the other referenced site to slow the flow of water and temporarily store peak flows in the landscape to reduce flood levels downstream. Data via plota.co.uk

View original council record ↗

Application progress

Received
10 Jul 2026
Decision
Awaiting decision

This application is under consideration - no decision has been issued yet.

Rossendale
Planning Authority Score
1/10
Poor
#293 of 296 councils
Relevant to this application:
Householder decisions

Rossendale is one of the slowest councils in England for householder decisions, ranking #287 out of 296. The council extends the time limit on 75% of applications - one of the highest rates in England. Expect your application to take longer than the standard deadline. Householder applications are slightly less likely to be approved here (88%) than the national average (90%).

Among the slowest councils in England
for householder decisions
These figures are council-wide context, not a prediction for this application. View full council performance
Rossendale decision performance
Based on MHCLG data, the year to March 2026
86%
Overall approval rate
Below avg (87%) #197 of 296
88%
Householder approved
Below avg (90%) #222 of 296
27%
Decided in 8 weeks
Below avg (63%) #287 of 296
75%
Extended time limit
Above avg (41%) #293 of 296
85%
Minor dwellings approved
34 decided (1-9 homes)
100%
Major dwellings approved
3 decided (10+ homes)
59%
Change of use approved
17 decided
231
Total decisions
33 refused in the year to March 2026