(Plot A) The land known as Chafford Park Farm, Aveley Road, Upminster, RM14 2TE

i. Within the last 10 years the unauthorised material change of uses of Plot A (shown hatched on the plan attached to the enforcement notice) from use connected with the servicing, repair, rebuilding, dismantling, spraying and parking of motor vehicles to a use as a scaffolding yard including storage and maintenance of scaffolding equipment and administration offices for the business. ii. Within the last 4 years, unauthorised operational development of Plot A (shown hatched on the plan attached to the enforcement notice) in the form of the erection of sheds and fencing using metal corrugated sheets exceeding 5m high, racking erected using scaffolding poles and corrugated sheets, the siting of metal containers, and siting of portable buildings

Authority: London Borough of Havering
Appeal type: enforcement · Enforcement Notice
Procedure: Written Representations
Development: employment-industrial · Change of use
Inspector: Peerless K

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

Whether the matters alleged to be a breach of planning control have taken place as a matter of fact
Whether the developments that constitute those matters are a breach of planning control
Whether the developments are immune from planning enforcement through the passage of time
Whether the developments would be inappropriate development in the Green Belt having regard to the National Planning Policy Framework and relevant development plan policies
The effect of the developments on the openness of the Green Belt and the character and appearance of the area
Whether any harm by reason of inappropriateness and any other harm would be clearly outweighed by other considerations so as to amount to very special circumstances
Whether the steps required to be taken by the notice exceed what is required to rectify the breach of planning control
Whether the time for compliance is reasonable

What decided it

The cumulative impact of the mixed use on the openness of the Green Belt, with significantly increased site coverage and height of external storage compared to the original authorised B2 use, constituted inappropriate development for which no very special circumstances were demonstrated.

Framework references: 150

Plan policies cited: London Borough of Havering Local Plan 2016-2031

Read the decision letter on the Inspectorate’s site

The main issues and the deciding factor are read from the published letter by Town Planner Pro; the letter itself is the record. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Research, not advice.