Planning enforcement

Planning enforcement relates to anything that requires planning permission but does not have it, or failing to comply with a planning condition. More about planning conditions.

Government advice on planning enforcement

We follow Government advice in dealing with breaches of planning control. The Planning Act specifically allows for retrospective planning permission to be sought and granted. Where breaches occur, our approach is to suggest to the person responsible for the development that they should submit a retrospective application.

Enforcement action

Enforcement action is discretionary and Section 172 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 states that the local planning authority may only issue an enforcement notice where it appears to them that:

• there is a breach of planning control
• it is expedient to issue the notice having regards to the provisions of the development plan and to any other material considerations

Report a breach of planning control

Click on the "Report it" link in the right hand column to report suspected breaches of planning control online. The completed form will give us all of the information needed to begin an investigation. For more advice see our Report a breach of planning control page.

Powers for special controls

In addition there are separate powers for other special controls for Tree Preservation Orders, listed buildings, conservation areas, advertisements, hedgerows and planning obligations. The breaking of these regulations is often a criminal offence and is dealt with differently.

Planning enforcement statement of service provision

You can download our planning enforcement statement of service provision below.