Enforcement

Enforcement Control

The Council has powers to control unauthorised development and may take formal action in order to remedy a breach of planning control where it is expedient and in the public interest to do so. The breaches of planning control the Council deal with include:

• Erection of buildings, extensions or alterations to buildings.
• The material change of use of land or buildings.
• The breach of a condition imposed on a planning permission.
• The failure to comply with plans approved as part of a planning permission.
• Advertisements.
• Works to or the removal of a Hedgerow or a Protected Tree.
• Works to a listed building.
• Untidy land and buildings.

Making a Complaint

You can contact the enforcement section directly with a complaint using the report form.

The Council aims to achieve the following:

• The Enforcement section aims to resolve 60% of all complaints from members of the public within 12 weeks of receipt. Resolving a case would involve taking formal action, receiving a planning application, or judging there to be either no breach or a breach not worthy of action.
• The section aims to resolve 70% of all non-complaint files within 6 months of receipt.

The section also aims to meet following targets with regard to enforcement matters:

• The Council will endeavor to acknowledge complaints made in writing, via the online complaint form or by e-mail within 5 working days.
• Written complaints to be investigated according to the priority allocated to the complaint: Priority 1 within 1 to 5 working Days, Priority 2 within 5 to 15 working days and Priority 3 within 28 working days. To see how the priority is allocated, please see the leaflet Planning Enforcement: A Guide for the Public.
• Assessment of the severity of the breach within 28 days.
• Advising complainants of the resolution of a case within 28 days of that resolution.
• Publicising policy and procedures on enforcement.

It should be noted that in general the section would investigate complaints where the complainant is identified and a written complaint form or letter is provided. Telephone complainants will usually be sent a complaint form to complete and return, however anonymous complaints will generally only be investigated where time constraints allow. In addition, the section has recently received a number of malicious and spurious complaints from anonymous sources and it should be noted that such complaints are given the very lowest priority.