All decisions on planning matters are made by the Local Planning Authority (LPA) Wakefield MDC.

As a statutory consultee the Ackworth Parish Council work to reflect the priorities and values shared by the community in influencing planning decisions to benefit the community. Ackworth Parish Council has no direct power to approve or refuse planning applications. The Parish Council are able to object to applications and ask questions of the LPA.

All planning matters are presented to the Parish Council at its monthly meeting and disclosed to the public, and any agreed action will be followed up.

Government planning regulations required Local Authorities to identify Local Service Centres.  The Regional Spatial Strategy defines Local Service Centres as "towns and villages that provide services that meet the needs of, and are accessible to people living in surrounding rural areas."  Ackworth Moor Top matched this description and so was designated a Local Service Centre in the 2007 Local Development Framework.  This designation is to meet the requirement of government planning guidelines. Ackworth is still a village.

If you wish to make a comment about any current application, please do so online at www.wakefield.gov.uk/planning or write to Planning Services, Wakefield One, PO Box 700, Burton Street, Wakefield, WF1 2EB. 

At its meeting in February 2023, the Parish Council approved the following proposal:

"Ackworth Parish Council is opposed to any plans to build houses on greenbelt land and to any plans to build a road that encroaches on Hessle and on Brackenhill Common.  We are opposed to any local development that will result in a significant increase in traffic movement through Ackworth" 

Tree Felling 

Changes to Current Planning System  

The Parish Council received a request from National Association of Local Councils for a response to this.

Click here to see the response to part one sent on behalf of the Parish Council.

Click here to see the response to part two sent on behalf of the Parish Council. 

Where the Parish Council has not responded to a question on the consultation it is because there was insufficient time to fully inform ourselves of the implications or it was a complex question and we lacked the expertise to answer the question in an informed way.

The Government is proposing to make radical changes to Existing Planning Legislation.  Broadly speaking Local Development Plans will be replaced by a zonal system.

There will be 3 areas