Unsure if neighbour needs planning permission?

playaz

My neighbour some months ago constructed a conservatory and he told me that he didn't require planning permission to do so (I took his word for it..), recently I have noticed they are now constructing another building at the rear of their back garden.

This building appears to be quite large (bigger than a standard shed) and is constructed of 'heavy duty' bricks - at the side of the garden they have dug up the ground and this appears that this will be used to lay down (I presume) pipework to connect to the this new external building (I am guessing for waste etc..)

I am no builder so do not know the legal aspects of everything but if they are breaking the law by constructing buildings without any planning permission then I feel that I should report it. I have checked the local council website and can confirm that at no point has any applications been made by this person.

My neighbour doesn't speak the best of english so I don't really want to talk face-to-face with him as it will just be a case of 'I do not understand what you mean' etc...

Can anyone give me some advice on the matter, I'm going to contact the local council shortly but is there anything else I should know before going 'full force' on the subject :-)

Thanks in advance

davidmcn

Difficult to advise further if you don't even know what it is they're building!

moneyistooshorttomention

Which part of the country are you in? - as things seem to be a bit different, for instance, for some things between England and Wales. Presumably Scotland and Ireland might have other differences??

Try checking out the government "planning portal" re specifics.

guestman

reading between the lines " im jealous of my neighbour and want to grass him up "

TBagpuss

Have you looked at your local council's website? they normally have a section dealing with planning which will have some information.

They may also have a duty planning officer you can speak to who would be able to give general information, and then depending on what she tells you you can get a better idea of whether you neighbours should get permission and what you want to do if it appears that they need, but don't have it!

It's likely that what your neighbour told you about the conservatory is correct - it may well have been covered by 'permitted development'

playaz

guestman wrote: »

reading between the lines " im jealous of my neighbour and want to grass him up "

Hi mate your message made me chuckle lol - I assure you i'm not jealous... i've seen his wife!! Trust me... I have NOTHING to be jealous of, I am just thinking that if this is illegal then it is illegal? If someone was growing marijuana in their garden i'd be no different... although the whiff of some good weed might make me mellow out over time lol

Better_Days

Have a look at this link on the planning portal
https://www.planningportal.co.uk/info/200125/do_you_need_permission

What is permitted and doesn't therefore need PP is covered. It's worth noting that what is permitted changes depending on how close the structure is to the boundary, and how much of the site has been developed. Don't forget Building Regs may be needed, again depending on what is being built.

Our neighbour significantly contravened the permitted development rules building a 4m high 'barn' 80cm from the boundary. Planning enforcement did take action, and fairly quickly too. Planning also informed the NDN that BR's were needed as the barn floor area was over the 30 square metres.

Certainly worth ringing planning for advice.

McKneff

Just ring the planning dept and ask
Thats the only way you will get a definitive answer,
Thank you can decide what to do...

playaz

McKneff wrote: »

Just ring the planning dept and ask
Thats the only way you will get a definitive answer,
Thank you can decide what to do...

Yeh i just thought i'd get some advice here first as its not open til 2mrw - the planning portal site provided in another post is most helpful!
https://www.planningportal.co.uk

Hoploz

Generally speaking a conservatory won't need PP and will come under Permitted Development. Same goes for outbuildings usually, but it does depend on how close it is to the boundary, and whether it's use is ancillary to the main house. So it's ok to have a home office/gym/bar/teenager's den, but if it is not ancillary to the main house it would need PP. for example, it's ok for someone to use it as an office, but not ok to have a person live there separately to the family and pay them rent (as this would be separate to the main house)

Use the links above to check PD rules on outbuildings, then assuming it meets these rules, it would depend what use the building has as to whether or not PP is still required.

Of course if you're in green belt or conservation area etc you may have special circumstances that have different rules.

Ozzuk

Is what he is building causing you difficulty in any way? I could understand if it was an eyesore or blocking out light but from what you've said so far the only reason is that he is doing something potentially illegal.

On that basis I'd be minding my own business. If he wants to run the risk of having to pull it down that is up to him.

Just to add - there could also be an impact to you, he'll know you were the one who reported him so you could see all kinds off issues start.