Bin collections in the hot weather
From now until the end of September, our crews will be going out earlier than normal to collect your bins. Please make sure they are out by 6am on your collection day.
Planning obligations for Special Protection Areas (SAMMS)
Find out if your planning development is in a specially protected area and the fees to pay.
We ask developers for contributions to mitigate the impact of new development on protected sites.
Following a significant decline in important bird species in Kent we have worked with Natural England to create Strategic Access Management and Monitoring Strategies (SAMMS) for protected sites.
Find out if your site is in a protected area
If your site is in the SAMM area, we can only agree to a proposed development if we know that it won't harm the protected sites. You can show that your development will not harm these protected sites by contributing towards the mitigation measures for these areas.
Fees for Special Protection Areas
The amount you need to pay depends on the number of bedrooms proposed in the development and the Special Protection Area (SPA) that your site is in.
If your site affects both SPAs then you would need to pay a separate fee for each SPA.
The contribution is only paid for extra bedrooms in new properties (including holiday homes).
You can download our guidance on Special Protection Areas fees:
| SPA type | Fee |
|---|---|
| 1 bedroom per home | £355 |
| 2 bedrooms per home | £498 |
| 3 bedrooms per home | £670 |
| 4 or more bedrooms per home | £848 |
| SPA type | Fee |
|---|---|
| 1 bedroom per home | £181.47 |
| 2 bedrooms per home | £255.17 |
| 3 bedrooms per home | £346.96 |
| 4 or more bedrooms per home | £435.27 |
Developer contributions for the SPAs have allowed us to carry out bird and visitor surveys as part of the wider mitigation project, and have helped to fund Bird Wise.
Paying for a Special Protection Area
You can choose to pay for your planning application before a decision is made.
If you want to make your payment at a later stage, you can enter into a planning obligation agreement with us to make payment before the first occupation of your development.
You can ask for a refund of any SPA fee paid if:
- Your application was refused and you did not appeal this decision within the six month period.
- Your application was refused and an appeal was dismissed.
- You withdrew your application before a decision was made.