We are delighted with our recent enforcement appeal success against Worthing Borough Council which also saw full costs awarded to our client.
The grounds:
The crux of the alleged enforcement was over a small section of an existing car park which serves the medical centre (we had previously obtained planning permission for the medical centre in 2012). This small section was composed of unmade ground. Hardstanding had been laid in order to even out the surface. The enforcement notice was issued against operational development which was causing no harm to amenity.
The flaws:
The enforcement notice was flawed on a number of counts:
- In this situation the laying of hardstanding is permitted via the GPDO.
- The Council was trying to control a lawful ancillary use via an inappropriate allegation of operational development.
- Essentially the wording on the enforcement notice didn’t match with what was being alleged and any amendment of the notice would be prejudicial to our client.
We felt the behaviour of the local council was unreasonable. We took the case to appeal and applied for costs due to the wasted time and expenses incurred by our client.
History repeating:
Unfortunately this isn’t the first time we have had to deal with Worthing Council in regard to this enforcement case. A similar notice was issued earlier in 2015. We appealed this notice on the grounds it should be quashed in terms of its content and whether it complied with s.173 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. The Planning Inspectorate agreed with our stance and wrote to Worthing Council seeking comments. The Council withdrew the notice but immediately issued another enforcement notice which was virtually identical to that of the previous notice.
Given the similarity between the withdrawn notice and the notice in this appeal it was agreed that the Council acted unreasonably in issuing a second notice with the same flaws. We were successful in getting both notices quashed and full costs awarded.
About us:
Plainview Planning is an independent town and country planning consultancy. Our team is made up of knowledgeable planners and urban designers who care for their clients and projects. We pride ourselves on providing intelligent planning support with a keen eye and fresh perspective. If you require enforcement assistance then don’t hesitate to contact the team via enquiries@plainview.co.uk.
IMAGE SOURCE: Martin Critchell Architects (2010)