Cost recovery for NSIPs
Dartford Borough Council can provide advice and information to applicants for Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs), including proposed and submitted Development Consent Order (DCO) applications.
In accordance with the Infrastructure Planning (Fees) Regulations 2010, as amended by the Infrastructure Planning (Fees) (Amendment) Regulations 2026, Dartford Borough Council can recover its reasonable costs incurred in providing relevant services relating to:
- Proposed applications for Development Consent Orders;
- Submitted applications for Development Consent Orders;
- Applications to make changes to Development Consent Orders;
- Applications to revoke Development Consent Orders; and
- Implementation matters relating to a Development Consent Order
Relevant services include advice, information, technical input, responses to consultations, participation in meetings, review of documentation, project management, coordination of specialist advice and other assistance provided in connection with NSIP proposals.
Charges will be based on the reasonable costs incurred by Dartford Borough Council in providing these services. Cost recovery will be sought for the full range of services and work provided in relation to DCO proposals. This may include officer time, management oversight, administrative support, specialist technical advice, legal advice and any external consultancy support where required.
The Council will apply a standard hourly rate for relevant services provided by Council officers and is therefore based on salary and on costs in the relevant financial year. This rate will be applied to the time spent by officers on a given project. The rate (excluding VAT) for 2026/27 is £85.00 per hour.
The hourly rate is based on a cost recovery basis only and will be kept under review.
Where specialist consultants, legal advisers or agency staff are required, these costs may also be recovered at cost and such costs will be set out separately for agreement with the applicant,
Charges will not exceed the reasonable costs incurred by Dartford Borough Council in providing relevant services, and will demonstrate fairness and value.
The Council will seek to cover costs for the following relevant services including but not limited to:
- Planning
- Project and Programme Management including associated administrative costs
- Senior Management
- Legal Services
- Corporate Services including Communications
- Active travel matters and bus shelters
- Agricultural land quality assessment
- Air quality
- Climate Change and Carbon, including water and energy use
- Communities
- Contamination
- Design Review
- Ecology & Biodiversity
- Economic Development
- Environmental Protection: noise and other nuisance
- Food safety
- Health and Safety matters that the Council is responsible for
- Heritage
- Landscape value
- Parking controls
- Parks and Open Spaces
- Property in Council ownership
- Skills and Employment
These “relevant services” may need to be updated dependant on the types of development coming forward and whether such matters fall to be considered by the Council as a second-tier authority
External technical advice/support is likely to need to be procured for some relevant services including, but is not limited to:
- Air Quality
- Agricultural land quality assessment
- Climate Change and Carbon
- Water use assessment
- Energy use assessment
- Ecology/bio-diversity advice
- Heritage
- Landscape Value Impact Assessment
- Design Review Panel
- Financial Viability Assessment
- Legal advice
Charges for such external technical advice will be based on quotations from the relevant consultant and will be provided to the applicant for agreement before any services are procured (unless fully funded by the Council).
Kent County Council as an upper tier local authority will be a host authority consulted separately, and the Council will work with them on the matters that they are responsible for such as Highways and Transport; Education; and Emergency planning