Breach of Conditions
A breach of conditions notice requires its recipient to secure compliance with the terms of a planning condition or conditions, specified by the local planning authority in the notice (section 187A of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990).
A breach of condition notice is mainly intended as an alternative to an enforcement notice for remedying a breach of condition – but it may also be served in addition to an enforcement notice, perhaps as an alternative to a stop notice, where the local planning authority consider it expedient to stop the breach quickly and before any appeal against the enforcement notice is determined.
Following the end of the period for compliance, a “person responsible” who has not ensured full compliance with the conditions and any specified steps, will be in breach of the notice and guilty of an offence section 187A(8) and (9) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. Summary prosecution can be brought in the Magistrates’ Court for the offence of contravening a breach of condition notice.
Enforcement Notice
A breach of planning control is defined in section 171A of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 as:
the carrying out of development without the required planning permission; or failing to comply with any condition or limitation subject to which planning permission has been granted. Any contravention of the limitations on, or conditions belonging to, permitted development rights, under the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015, constitutes a breach of planning control against which enforcement action may be taken.
Local planning authorities have discretion to take enforcement action, when they regard it as expedient to do so having regard to the development plan and any other material considerations. This includes a local enforcement plan, where it is not part of the development plan.
In most cases, development becomes immune from enforcement if no action is taken:
- within 4 years of substantial completion for a breach of planning control consisting of operational development (being removed with the new Leveling Up and Regeneration Act 2023);
- within 4 years for an unauthorised change of use to a single dwellinghouse (being removed with the new Leveling Up and Regeneration Act 2023);
- within 10 years for any other breach of planning control (essentially other changes of use).
The power to issue an enforcement notice is discretionary (section 172 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990).
An enforcement notice should only be issued where the local planning authority is satisfied that it appears to them that there has been a breach of planning control and it is expedient to issue a notice, taking into account the provisions of the development plan and any other material considerations.
Resolution Strategy
Enforcement action can be a serious consequence from not complying directly with planning consents and planning conditions. Owners can become victims of enforcement action from unknowingly purchasing land that doesn’t comply with planning and implementing the right strategy to resolve planning enforcement is imperative.
Landic can help remove enforcement notices and submit respective planning applications to regularise consents or gain planning permission.