Enforcement

You can make a complaint about what appears to be unauthorised building work or uses of land either in writing, in person, by e-mail, by phone or by speaking to an elected member. It is also possible to complete the online Enforcement Complaint Form, which will send details of your complaint directly to the Enforcement team.

When the Enforcement team initially receive a complaint, an acknowledgement letter is sent confirming that the enquiry has been received.   If the officers decide that a complaint is urgent, an officer will normally visit the site involved on the same day. An urgent complaint can involve work to trees in conservation areas and trees that are protected by tree preservation orders, work to listed buildings, demolition of buildings and walls in conservation areas, and other work that could have a lasting and harmful effect on the environment.  If the complaint is not considered to be urgent, an officer will normally visit the site within five working days of receiving the complaint.

Once an officer has visited the site and collected any relevant information, including the planning records for the site, officers will then have to decide what further action (if any) needs to be taken.  If a breach of planning regulations has taken place the Council may issue an Enforcement Notice explaining the nature of the breach and indicating what steps should be taken to rectify it. If the works are in progress and may cause environmental damage a Stop Notice may be issued requiring all works to be halted.

For more information please see our customer guide: Enforcement of  Planning Regulations

Enforcement Enquiry Form

This online form enables you to register a complaint about an activity or building, which you believe does not have planning permission and which you wish the Council to investigate further to see if there has been a breach of planning control.

Under the Local Government Act 1972, all of the information provided is confidential and your identity is not disclosed.  However, it will usually be necessary to inform the owner/occupier of the land/building that a complaint has been made.

All of the fields in the form must be completed, and although each entry field should be large enough for details to be entered, it is recommended that details of the complaint are as concise as possible.  It is also important that full and accurate address details are provided.

Once the form is completed, click on the ‘Send’ button and your complaint will be forwarded directly to the Enforcement Team.

Once your complaint has been logged, the Enforcement Team will endeavour to respond to urgent complaints within 24hrs, and all other complaints within 5 working days.  At the conclusion of the investigation, the Enforcement Team will contact you to inform you of the outcome of your complaint.

Please also see the Planning Enforcement Policy document.