Planning enforcement principles

The Local Planning Authority endeavours to maintain public confidence in the planning system. The Planning Enforcement team will strive to uphold the following key principles in day to day operations:

Proportionality

Any enforcement action taken should be proportionate to the severity of the breach and the level of harm caused to amenity. The Local Planning Authority will consider its full range of enforcement powers in order to resolve breaches of planning, including negotiation and retrospective planning applications. It is at the Council’s discretion whether to take formal enforcement action.

Consistency

The Local Planning Authority will seek to be consistent in their approach with investigating, assessing and resolving breaches of planning control. Each case is assessed on its own merits at the professional judgement of the enforcement team.

Objectivity

Enforcement officers will make decisions based on the information available and the merits of each case, taking into account local and national planning policies and guidance.

Transparency

Where breaches of planning are identified, officers will explain why the development or works are considered to be unauthorised, what can be done to rectify the breach, give reasonable timescales and be able to give a clear explanation for the reasoning behind their decision.

Helpfulness

Where it may be possible for minor or certain breaches to be remedied quickly, officers will seek to negotiate and offer advice to seek to rectify the breach. Correspondence from the enforcement team will identify the officer dealing with the case and provide relevant contact details. Officers will aim to respond to call enquiries and correspondence within a reasonable time frame.