Monmouthshire County Council has identified multiple issues affecting its planning website and mobile application.
The Democratic Services Committee examined these concerns during its meeting on April 20.
Councillors Lisa Dymock, Meirion Howells, Louise Brown, Tomos Davies, David Jones, Tony Kear, Su McConnel, Peter Strong, Tudor Thomas, and Christopher Edwards attended the meeting, while councillor John Crook provided an apology for his absence.
The review, based on input from committee members, found that although the planning website operates satisfactorily on council computers, it has several shortcomings.
These shortcomings include unclear links between the mapping function and planning applications, infrequent updates during processing delays, and insufficient information about progress between submission and decision stages.
The review also highlighted digital exclusion experienced by community members, particularly older residents without internet access or email addresses.
The MyMonmouthshire application was found to have numerous difficulties related to usability, performance, and functionality.
These difficulties encompass the system feeling cluttered and overwhelming, reports failing during the submission process, problems with pinpointing locations on rural roads, and limited visibility into status once work orders are completed.
The application was also criticised for its dated visual appearance and substandard user experience.
A council representative explained that most correctly submitted reports are being resolved within acceptable timeframes, while certain reports remain open because they were logged using incorrect forms or forwarded to departments that are not fully using the platform.
Committee members proposed several improvements, including introducing What3Words integration to enhance location accuracy, creating better dashboards or case viewing options, and adding photographs after work completion to provide confirmation to residents.
Further systematic recording of system issues was suggested, alongside involving the Digital Team to evaluate potential enhancements.
The next meeting is scheduled for July 20, 2026.