Planning covers a huge array of individual topics and its scope is vast. Here are just a few of them and you should expect your planning professional to be able to advise you on most if not all of them.
Advertisements
They have their own, separate system of control. Unlike normal breaches of planning control, failure to comply with the special Regulations results in prosecution. And like many developments, adverts have their own ‘permitted development rights – the ability to display adverts without the need to obtain consent first.
Building operations
Not all building operations require planning permission, just those that are normally undertaken by a person carrying on business as a builder. Size, permanence and physical attachment are key considerations and it is possible that some works are considered to be too small to require planning permission.
Curtilage
Defining the curtilage of a dwelling is very important. It assists in determining whether permitted development rights are available or whether listed building protection extends to existing structures.
Development plans
All decisions are made with reference to the development plan and should be in conformity with it, unless material considerations dictate otherwise. Ranging from central government advice to local development plans, and sometime emerging policies, the scope of development plans must be understood when considering any proposed development.
Enforcement
Councils have a range of weapons to deploy in respect of unauthorised development: stop notices, breach of condition notices, enforcement notices and injunctions. Some can be the subject of appeal, many carry a criminal sanction if ignored and all should receive the appropriate, timely response.
Farm buildings
The planning control of agricultural buildings is bedeviled by complex legal requirements which means that some agricultural structures require conventional planning permission, some are subject to the prior notification procedure, others are permitted development, and yet others may not be development at all because of their mobile characteristics.
Green Belt
A green belt surrounds London and almost all major conurbations.They are there to prevent urban encroachment into the countryside and only development that does not harm the openness of the Green Belt will normally be allowed. Developers will have to demonstrate very special circumstances before permission will be granted.
Housing
Few areas of planning are as contentious as housing. As a crowded island, meeting the rising demand for houses is a challenge. Government policy dictates that it should be located on previously developed land but with the withdrawal of gardens from the definition there will be pressure on undeveloped land and green belts to provide housing land. Add to that the pressure to provide sufficient numbers of affordable houses and you can see that the challenge is the greatest one facing developers and local authorities alike.
Immunity from enforcement
Not all breaches of planning may result in enforcement. After a set period of time, either four or ten years depending on the breach, the use becomes lawful and no enforcement action may be taken. For more information click here.
Judicial review
Almost every decision made by a local planning authority is susceptible to judicial review. The decision to grant planning permission or to refuse it, to serve an enforcement notice or not to take enforcement action, the way in which a policy has been formulated or the making of a tree protection order: all of these actions or decisions can be challenged by applicants, owners, third parties and even rival developers.
Kennels
Noise from kennels, and other establishments where animals are kept, may be a problem for new dwellings. The difficulty often occurs in the case of farm building conversions to dwellings where favourable consideration would be given to conversions within existing farm building groups, and on the other, external noise standards appropriate for new dwellings. Planning permission can be refused if the reasonable living standards of future occupiers might be compromised by noise from animals in the vicinity.
Listed buildings
Government agencies are responsible for designating which heritage assets are worthy of protection and over half a million items are protected in England alone, from historic gardens to scheduled ancient monuments. Once they are listed it is the duty of the local planning authority to control development in a way that seeks to maintain their historic or architectural interest. There are strict controls over removal of items that are either affixed to the building or within its curtilage and the highest penalties are reserved for alteration or listing of buildings without consent.
Material change of use
The making of any material change in the use of a building or land is development requiring planning permission. However, due to the huge variety and subtlety of changes that may be made, this concept creates difficulty in interpretation for both the planning authority and the applicant. The volume of litigation on this topic shows no sign of abating.
National Parks
There are 14 national parks in England and Wales. The highest level of protection is given to landscapes within the parks and the duty of national park authorities is the conservation and enhancement of their natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage, and the promotion of opportunities for the understanding and enjoyment of the special qualities of the National Park by the public. Development is strictly controlled and some permitted development rights are removed.
Obligations
In every case when planning permission is granted conditions are imposed, without which the development would be unacceptable. Some important matters cannot be dealt with by condition and so are provided by way of a deed, for example contributions towards education, transport and open space provision, or ensuring that affordable housing is provided. These are planning obligations that also enable development to proceed that would otherwise be unacceptable.
Public inquiry
Appeals against planning application decisions are dealt with by the Secretary of State and are determined by one of his Inspectors. The appeal can be dealt with in writing, by informal hearing or formal public inquiry. The latter is required if the issues are complex, if there is significant third party interest or if evidence should be given under oath. This is the forum in which experienced planning and legal professionals are deployed to great advantage.
The Queen
Until 2005 the provisions of the Town and Country Planning Acts did not bind the Crown. Thus bodies such as the Monarch, the Duchies of Cornwall and Lancaster, the Crown Estate, Government departments, the armed forces and the security services did not need to obtain planning permission as land owners or developers. They are now dealt with equally under the planning system although some exemptions are made in the interest of national security.
Replacement dwellings
Policies vary considerably from council to council, from the largely permissive to strictly controlled. Some will allow a like-for-like, others will specify the extent of additional size allowed, and yet others will allow the design of the new to decide the impact on the surrounding area. There is often a tension between the recognition of the need to replace, often where the house was lost by unintended means, and the undesirability of allowing new housing in unsustainable locations.
Shops
From the humblest farm shop to the largest retail development, the planning system exerts control over retail developments. The overriding objective is to place shops in sustainable locations, for example in existing town centres, unless there is a proven need and that there will be no harm to existing retail centres. Government policy is now expressed in PPS4 Planning for Sustainable Economic Growth.
Trees
Powers enabling local authorities to preserve existing trees date back to the Town and Country Planning Act 1932. The overall control relating to the protection of existing trees is extensive and covers the making and enforcement of TPOs, the control over felling in conservation areas, the power to refuse development which entails works to or the loss of trees, and conditional controls available when planning permission is granted for development. Tree preservation law suffers from the basic problem that it is not easy for that law to preserve a living organism with continually changing and varied growing and dying processes. However, the desirability of enabling the planning system to safeguard trees and woodland in the interests of amenity is an unchallenged concept.
Use Classes Order
The purpose of the Order is to define groups of uses (or classes) of land and buildings, changes within which classes do not require planning permission i.e. no development is deemed to have taken place. Such a legislative provision is seen as necessary to remove a myriad of minor and insignificant changes of use which would otherwise clog up the administrative machinery of development control.
Views
The preservation of views is not regarded as a material consideration when determining planning applications for new development but outlook, or short term views, is protected. New buildings can appear overdominant from people’s homes and gardens and issues of overlooking and overshadowing are also important considerations.
Windfall sites
Windfall sites are those which have not been specifically identified as available in the local plan process. They comprise previously developed sites that have unexpectedly become available. These could include, for example, large sites such as might result from a factory closure or very small changes in the built environment, such as a residential conversion or a new flat over a shop. Some council’s policies will resist housing development on windfall sites, preferring allocated sites but they can still be utilised as exception sites for affordable housing where 100% yield is required.
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Your land
The biggest single factor that decides the value of your land is either the use to which it is now put, or the use for which it can be developed. That is determined by the development plan (see above) plus a consideration of relevant material considerations. There is no substitute for expert advice from planning professionals.
Zoos
Like all tourist attractions, zoos come under the planning control system. The most significant document offering planning guidance is the Good Practice Guide on Planning for Tourism (2006). It places great emphasis on the benefits of tourism to the national and local economy, and the social and environmental well being of the whole country.
