Certificate of Lawfulness success for an existing residen...

Our recent approval for a Certificate of Lawfulness for an existing residential dwelling, has secured residential use on a site in East Grinstead.
The site has a complex history, and is part of a much wider scheme which will involve the relocation of a pet crematorium, and the redevelopment of the site into two new dwellings, to enable the rationalisation of the business operations.

Obtaining a Certificate of Lawfulness for an existing development or use:

The certificate sought to confirm that the building at the rear of the site had been used as an independent dwelling in excess of 4 years.
As the guidance states, the burden of proof is on the appellant. We therefore worked with our client to compile a robust evidence dossier. We presented a varied evidence base to prove that the building had been continually used as single dwelling for 13 years. This substantially exceeded the 4 years of evidence needed for this particular certificate. Examples of the evidence provided included:

relevant receipts;
invoices;
and statutory declarations.

The relevant test of the evidence in such matters is ‘the balance of probability’. We successfully argued that the evidence presented was far in excess of what is required by this test and we presented relevant case law which further supported the application.
We are delighted with the approval from Mid Sussex District Council, which is the first step in the overarching scheme for the redevelopment of the wider site; with a mixed-use scheme incorporating the existing pet crematorium and residential uses.
This scheme gives some insight into our strategic involvement on complex projects, carefully guiding our clients through the necessary stages to help secure long term goals on site.
If your site could benefit from such strategic planning direction then contact the team via enquiries@plainview.co.uk to see how we can best assist.