Planning advice

Oddjob

Hi, I'm not sure where to put this so please move it if necessary.

I have just sent in opposition to a planning application for the house next door to me to be turned into a multi occupation house with 6 bedrooms - there is currently 3.
I have been told by the planning officer that the application is going to be turned down as it is in a conservation area where multi occupation as opposed to family homes are frowned on and also because we already have serious parking problems - terraced houses - due to a community centre next door but one, back entrances from properties on the next road etc.
A house a few doors up was sold last year, they had contractors in for months making it into flats, not its been sold again and there seems to be more alterations going on, probably maing that multi occupation. I don't know if they actually put in a planning application for it, as from what the planning officer said about next door, it would probably have been turned down, if they didn't, what could be done about it now as the alterations to make it into flats was completed and contractors are in, changing it again?

Doozergirl

Report it to the Planning Department for enforcement. They'll decide if it's a problem or not.

Most applications are available to view online in the same place as the one you've just objected to. If one had been put in up the road, then it should probably be there.

Bear in mind that if you don't really know what it was, what it was changed to (indeed if it were materially changed from what it was before) or what's happening to it now. There are permitted development rights and some uses will pre-date planning policy and can be maintained. It could be perfectly fine.

Ant555

As already suggested check the online planning portal - google "online planning portal <your council name>" and I would be surprised if they didn't have one.

If pp has been granted and there is 'change of use' then the planners will be interested, especially if they have only just knocked back the same application from a few doors up the street!

If there is no PP on the portal then they might still be interested in the potentially unlawful 'change of use'.

Oddjob

Thanks for your replies.
I decided to phone the planning officer I spoke to about next door to ask him if he could send me a link to the planning application. He looked it up and they haven't applied for planning permission.
I told him my suspicions and asked if anything could be done now that they are already in the process of changing it. He said certainly there was and he would go and have a look.