Planning Enforcement standards and procedures

Investigating alleged breaches

Not all building works, changes of use, demolitions, advertisement signs, or tree works require permission from the Council, as local planning authority. However, when they do, breaches in planning control regulations could include:

• Unauthorised building or change of use
• Works that significantly change a building or use from that granted permission.
• Unauthorised implementation of a development that has planning permission without complying with any conditions or limitations attached to that permission.
• Unauthorised display of a sign or advertisement.
• Unauthorised demolition of listed buildings or buildings in a conservation area.
• Unauthorised felling or lopping a tree that is the subject of a Tree Preservation Order, or protected by virtue of being within a Conservation Area.

In addition to responding to complaints the service will carry out selected compliance inspections of approved developments and pro-active enforcement investigations where resources allow. Records will be maintained to show when and what works were inspected, the results of the inspection and any remedial action considered necessary.

When a breach of planning regulations is discovered, officers will deal with these according to the general approach set out in the department’s overall enforcement policy leaflet, ‘’Enforcement Policy Principles for Development and Street Scene Services(pdf, 55KB) ’’, and the following specific procedures and principles will also apply:

From the Complainant’s point of View

To initiate a planning enforcement investigation, complaints should normally be made in writing by letter, email or via the standard form provided on the Council’s web site. These should include the identity and address of the writer, the site address at which the alleged breach of planning control has taken place, a short description of what is alleged to be a breach of planning control and what is considered to be the harm caused by it. In exceptional circumstances, such as when emergency action is required, (see (3) below), or when there is a special reason why writing is difficult or impossible, then investigations can be initiated by a telephoned call or personal visit to speak to the planning enforcement team.

In respect of complaints received about alleged breaches the following service standards apply:

1. Written acknowledgement of requests for investigation within two working days.
2. Other than in cases where immediate or urgent action may be required, (see (3) below), carry out an initial investigation on possible breaches of planning control within four working days of receipt ensuring that any visiting officer produces identification.
3. In cases of reported breaches in planning control involving a serious and/or irreversible harm, the complaint will be investigated as a matter of priority as soon as possible, usually within the working day it is received, and urgent action will be instigated to stop the unlawful activity where harm being caused makes this appropriate. Examples of such urgent high priority cases are damage or demolition of listed buildings, buildings of townscape merit or buildings in conservation areas, damage to, or felling of protected trees, or any other cases where there is a serious and imminent danger of harm in planning policy terms that could not later be satisfactorily remedied.
4. Give the complainant information about how we will be dealing with complaint within 15 working days of receipt. The officer will clearly explain to the complainant whether a breach of planning control has occurred, whether or not it is considered expedient to instigate enforcement action and, if it is, the likely timescales involved to achieve a remedy.
5. Within 5 working days of a decision to take, or not take, formal enforcement action the complainant(s) will be informed of this in writing.
6. Confidentiality of a complaint’s identity will be safeguarded at investigation stage.
7. Information about enforcement complaints, including key stages of investigation will be made available to the public, including via the Council’s web site by April 2007.

From the Contravener’s point of view.

The usual approach before taking formal enforcement action is for the officer concerned to fully and openly discuss the circumstances of the breach and where possible resolve any points of difference.  A warning will normally be given, (including a formal caution if the works carried out are potentially illegal), and a time period to comply with the legislation.  In such cases written notice of the breach and the requirement to conform to the legislation will be given before any action is taken. However, this may not be possible if urgent or immediate enforcement action needs to be taken such as in the examples given in (3) above.

When breaches appear to have occurred officers will:

• Communicate clearly to the responsible party or their agent identifying the problem and the measures that may need to be taken to achieve compliance.
• In the case of formal action being authorised the contravener’s rights of appeal will be explained to them.
• Where officer’s consider there is no significant planning harm or that harmful effects may be satisfactorily addressed by mitigation measures, allow a reasonable period for the submission of a retrospective planning application to regularise a breach of planning control.
• Where initial attempts to persuade the contravenor voluntarily to remedy the harmful effects of unauthorised development fails, negotiations will not hamper or delay whatever formal enforcement action may be required to make the development acceptable.
• Initiate formal enforcement powers given to local planning authorities when necessary, after being satisfied that there is a clear breach of planning control that would unacceptably affect public amenity or the existing use of land and buildings meriting protection in the public interest.
• Within 5 working days of a decision to take, or not take, formal enforcement action the contravener will be informed of this in writing.