Can I put a static van in my garden?

scrummy_mummy_2

Planning-officer...so, the more you do to identify that it (might) be being used as a separate dwelling (such as fencing off the bit of your garden it is in) would detract from the assertion that it is being used purely as ancillary accommodation.....if it was, say your mother "living" in it but using your living room, bathroom etc, occassionally, this would still be anciallary accommodation wouldn't it????

planning_officer

The first bit of your question is true, but not really the second bit - if your mother is living in it and was only using the house occasionally, it seems to me like it is a fully self contained annexe and capable of being lived in as an independent dwelling. This goes beyond what is called 'ancillary'. If your mother was living in it, and it literally had no bathroom or kitchen facilities for example, and instead she relied on the main house for that - then it could be considered ancillary, but if it contains all the facilities necessary to live there, it won't be ancillary.

I have just dealt with an outbuilding in someones garden, which was fitted out as a dwelling - kitchen, WC, lounge area, bedroom - i.e. fully self contained, and we considered that it was not ancillary to the main dwelling, as someone could (and indeed was) living there independently - they were a relative of the occupiers of the main house, but they rarely used the main house and basically just lived in the outbuilding.