Commentary on Sections Part 4 — Conservation Areas Section 166 — Conservation area agreements
630.The Welsh Ministers and planning authorities may use conservation area agreements to collaborate in allocating grant money for the repair of buildings in conservation areas. Section 166(1) and (2) provide that the Welsh Ministers and one or more planning authorities may agree to set aside for a specified period of years an amount of money for making grants to repair buildings that are in a conservation area and are included in a list or shown on a map prepared for this purpose.
631.In practice, the negotiation of a conservation area agreement typically starts with a planning authority drawing up a “delivery plan” setting out what the aims, objectives and targets of the scheme would be. If the Welsh Ministers are happy with the delivery plan, it will form the basis of the conservation area agreement. If (as is normally the case) it is agreed that the planning authority will supervise the agreement, the authority will be responsible for making the grants, including the share contributed by any other partner organisations.
632.A grant made in relation to a conservation area agreement may, in certain circumstances, be recovered by the body that made it. If the body is the Welsh Ministers, the recovery powers set out in section 165 will apply, but with a recovery period of 3 years (section 166(5)). If a planning authority has made a grant under section 148 (in Part 3), the recovery powers set out in section 149 (also Part 3) will apply.