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Notice varied and upheld29 June 20223214872

Ashwells Road (Known As Karma Court), Pilgrims Hatch, Brentwood, CM15 9SG

Planning appeal 3214872 at Ashwells Road (Known As Karma Court), Pilgrims Hatch, Brentwood, CM15 9SG (Brentwood Borough Council) was allowed in part (a split decision) on 29 June 2022 by Inspector Phillips A, following an inquiry. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: The appeal on ground (b): whether the mobile home and portacabin constitute operational development ('buildings') and whether the site comprises one or two planning units.

the making of a material change of use of the land from agricultural use to a mixed use of agricultural use and residential use and car sales and car storage use and also unauthorised operational development by the siting of a mobile home on the land which, given its degree of permanence, facilitates the unauthorised residential use, shown for the purposes of identification only on the attached plan and shaded brown, and also the siting of a portacabin which is used as an office for the car sales/car storage business on the land, shown for the purposes of identification only on the attached plan and shaded green, to facilitate the unauthorised material change of use of the land

Authority
Brentwood Borough Council
Appeal type
enforcement · Enforcement Notice
Procedure
Inquiry
Development
other · Change of use
Inspector
Phillips A
Postcode
CM15 9SG

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

  • The appeal on ground (b): whether the mobile home and portacabin constitute operational development ('buildings') and whether the site comprises one or two planning units
  • The appeal on ground (d): whether, at the date the notice was issued, the alleged uses had become immune from enforcement action through the passage of time
  • The appeal on ground (g): whether the periods for compliance specified in the notice are reasonable

What decided it

The appellant failed to produce sufficiently robust evidence to establish continuous, uninterrupted use over the relevant immunity periods, so the alleged breaches had not become lawful through the passage of time.

The Inspector found that the Council's position struck an appropriate balance between the appellant's and his son's Article 8 rights and the public interest in remedying the ongoing harm caused by the unauthorised development, protecting the openness of the Green Belt and the character and appearance of the area.

What the Inspector cited

Judgments
Skerritts of Nottingham Ltd v SSETR & Harrow LBC (No. 2) [2000] JPL 1025; Kestrel Hydro v SSCLG & Spelthorne BC [2015] EWHC 1654 (Admin), [2016] EWCA Civ 784; Burdle & Williams v SSE & New Forest RDC [1972] 1 WLR 1207; R (Ocado Retail Ltd) v Islington LBC [2021] PTSR 1833; Snook v Secretary of State for the Environment (1977) 33 P & CR; Collins v SSCLG [2013] EWCA Civ 1193

How the Inspector dealt with each one is set out in the app, in order: the development plan, national policy, housing land supply, other considerations and the planning balance, beside the letter.

See how each was applied

The decision letter

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The authority’s record since 2016 · every decision in 2022

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The main issues, what decided it, the planning balance and the policies and judgments listed as cited are read from the published letter by Town Planner Pro and are our summary, not the Inspector’s words; the letter itself is the record. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Research, not advice.

In the app this decision sits on the map beside every appeal around it, with its letter to read and the main issues, policies and judgments cited picked out.