Lavingham Planning Consultants

Planning and Development Specialists in Yorkshire and the North East

North Yorkshire

Using a professional at a planning committee

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As part of our role as a professional planning consultant we often act for our Clients when the applications are dealt with by the local Council Planning Committee.

Standing up and speaking in public can be daunting for some of our customers and we have found we can provide concise policy driven information related to your cases eloquently to the committee to get a positive outcome.

Understanding the way the Planning Committee works and knowing what they want to hear can take some time to process whereas we have experience from both sides of the table you hopefully get the outcome you desire.

We have recently been successful in representing one of our Clients in the Committee process where the recommended decision from the Planning Officer was to refuse the application, but by standing and speaking for our Client we were able to relay the true facts of the application to the Committee and the development was approved.  Our Client was delighted.

You would be surprised how cost-effective Planning Committee representation is. Do get in touch to find out how we offer great value as professional planning consultants.

Why not call us for a FREE consultation today. For more information, please contact us at info@lavingham.com or send us a message via our social media platforms.

 

Planning approval rates grow

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The number of planning applications granted has steadily increased over the last decade up from 73.5% in 2010 to 80.5% now, new research has found.

Though the number of applications submitted is down by 4%. This number has stayed quite steady in general terms and with increased approval applications the number of actual houses being built has increased from 30% to 42% since 2010.

However, the introduced ethos of ‘presumption in favour of development’ via the National Planning Policy Framework does look to have boosted approvals, with an increase of 30,000 planning permissions per annum since 2014.

Reports have suggested that the increased approval rate has allowed more homes to be completed which has been complemented by a more efficient planning system.

If you need a hand getting your planning application into shape to get it through the planning process. Please do get in touch with us.

Why not call us for a FREE consultation today. For more information, please contact us at info@lavingham.com or send us a message via our social media platforms.

What do you know about Ag Tags?

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Not a lot? Then let us help you!

Some property on farmland has been restricted to Agricultural Occupancy (and have an Ag Tag) meaning they limit the use and occupation of the property to those employed in agriculture and were originally aimed at ensuring that the dwelling remains available to the wider agricultural workers community.

But the removal of an agricultural occupancy condition, or a certificate of lawfulness to regularise the non-compliance with it can increase the value of the dwelling by up to 30% so it is well worth considering.

We firstly look at what the circumstances are regarding the occupancy of the property to see if either route is appropriate for the Client.

The first route to addressing the ag-tag is by an application to the Local Authority to remove the condition from the original planning consent.

The Local Authority is only likely to remove an ‘Ag Tag’ if it can be proven that there is no need for the dwelling to be retained for agricultural workers’ occupancy.

Part of the way to prove this is to advertise the property for a period of between 8-12 months for sale at a realistic sale price.  At the end of that period if there is no interest in the property it is appropriate to have an independent market assessment carried out by a surveyor, taking into account the marketing exercise to demonstrate that there is not an existing or foreseeable need for the dwelling. This feeds into a planning justification statement on why the ag-tag condition is no longer appropriate.

The second route to achieve this is by applying for a certificate of lawfulness. Sometimes ag tag properties have not been occupied by agricultural workers for over 10 years, and where this has continuously happened and the Council has not taken any enforcement action against this, a Certificate of Lawfulness can be applied for to make lawful the occupancy of the house by non-agricultural workers. This does not remove the ‘ag-tag’ condition from the original permission but makes lawful the occupancy of the house by non-agricultural workers. Robust evidence needs to be provided to the Council about the occupancy of the dwelling to evidence the non-compliance with the ag-tag occupancy condition.

Is this something we could help you with?  Why not call us for a FREE consultation today. For more information, please contact us at info@lavingham.com or send us a message via our social media platforms.

 

What exactly is a Certificate of Lawfulness?

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We recently mentioned we had been successful in obtaining a Certificate of Lawfulness for one of our clients. We were pleased to get this sorted for the Client, but thought it would be a good time to explain more about how and why this needed to be obtained.

The property had had the approved house foundations poured in the early 1990s, but no further building action had taken place after that. We felt that the planning permission was still live, but it was vital for the Client to be able to prove to the local planning department that the permission previously granted was still valid and binding. The process of investigating this can be quite lengthy and it is advisable to seek professional help like ours to get this sorted. Our investigation of this not only involved discussions with our Client but also delving back through the historic records contained at the North Yorkshire County Records Office.

So, what is a Certificate of Lawfulness?

A Certificate of Lawfulness, in this case, allows you to make a formal application for a certificate to determine whether your development can become lawful through the passage of time and can be continued without the need for further planning permission.

In this case the planning permission had been given and foundations laid, but no further building action had been taken. It required us to fully investigate the case, speak to Building Control to ascertain that they were still functional enough to build upon.

The issue of a certificate depends on factual evidence we can gather about the history and planning status of the site or building and interpret any relevant planning law. The granting of a certificate applies only to the lawfulness of the development carried out.

We were able to supply this evidence in this case, to allow the Council to provide the Client with the certificate  to satisfy any future interest or enforcement for the local planning authority, and to allow the Client the certainty that the permission for their house was valid.

Sometimes planning work can take up more time than you would like so it is advisable to take some professional advice. This is where we can help you. Why not call us for a FREE consultation today. For more information, please contact us at info@lavingham.com or send us a message via our social media platforms.

What are the benefits of using a professional planning consultant?

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Well we would know, so here is what we think!

Many planning consultants have previously worked for local councils or private planning practices – YES, we have, we have worked for over ten years in a Local Authority planning team as a Planning Officer and understand how your local council planning department works!

What else can we offer?

  • We like to get involved early in the process to view any plans and give our opinion on them to consider local council regulations and policies.

 

  • This could save a lot of money from the outset to prevent costs to redraw plans and other tweaks, or progressing a scheme      which the Council wouldn’t accept in principle.We can assess your current situation and ensure your necessary documentation is ready to go!

 

  • We can liaise directly with the planning department on the Client’s behalf and handle any Council requests and objections. Having one central point of contact can allow appropriate responses to be supplied to the Council and the Client being advised on what changes may need to be made to appease the Planning Committee.

Councils always request more information than you think, and a planning consultant can always be on hand to provide                    additional information in response to any additional questions.

By knowing the planning legislation and the rights of objectors and yourself as the applicant for the scheme, a planning                    consultant will handle your case on your behalf.

 

  • Handling your case at Appeal

If your development hits a snag and ends up at Appeal your planning consultant will become your point of contact and                      handle the whole process for you.

 

How do I know if my barn conversion will need planning permission or not?

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We are often asked many questions about planning permission, and unfortunately a Yes or No is not always the answer. Of course we would always advise getting professional support when submitting a planning application on a range of options.

One area we often speak to our clients about is ‘what permissions are needed for barn conversions.’

Here are some of the situations where your planned barn conversion will not be permitted development and will still need planning permission:

  • if it is in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB)
  • if it is a listed building
  • if it isn’t on an agricultural unit (e.g. if the barn is in a garden or paddock rather than on a farm).

Outside these rules, there are numerous grey areas to find out about.  We would be able to advise you on whether your planned conversion is permitted development or not.

Interested in finding out more?

For more information, please contact us at info@lavingham.com or send us a message via our social media platforms.

 

We could be your planning specialists, come and say Hello!

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We are town and rural planning and development specialists.

We have been in business for the last two years but have developed a huge amount of experience as our principle, Andrew Cunningham, has spent 10 years of his professional life working in North Yorkshire in a local authority as part of their planning team.

In addition, to this varied experience, Andrew also holds an MSc in Town Planning and is a full member of the Royal Town Planning Institute. This experience, qualifications and excellent local authority knowledge of handling the full range of planning application types is a perfect way to ensure that your planning application is managed through the complex and increasingly challenging planning system.

Andrew set up Lavingham Planning Consultants to apply his specialist knowledge of planning particularly in a

  • rural
  • urban
  • heritage context

to provide comprehensive, good value advice, tailored to client’s needs, to achieve the best possible outcome for clients, hopefully adding value to their property, portfolio or land holding.

We are based in North Yorkshire but engage with clients throughout the UK.

We do not charge a fee for an initial local site visit, or a telephone or email consultation about your development proposal. So please do contact us via our social media platforms, give us a call or drop us an email, with your enquiry!

The planning process – What do you need to know!

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Planning applications have a ‘straightforward’ journey to approval. So they say….

For times where the path isn’t straightforward or even when it is, we like to help you to get there with the least amount of hassle, frustration, confusion etc etc etc.

Before you start on this journey, we wanted you to have a bit more background information about the planning process and how we can help.

Step 1 – Get professional plans drawn and your application completed, highlighting the positive aspects of your application. – We can help you prepare it and submit for you.

Step 2 – Once the application is submitted, the planning authority will publicise your application locally, and will notify immediate neighbours/businesses. – We can keep you in touch with developments in the application process and liaise directly with the planning team to answer any questions.

Step 3 – The public has a few weeks to comment on the application, to object or support it.- We monitor all public comments and gather additional information from the other consultees.

Step 4 – A decision is made on the application, usually within eight weeks of being submitted, on occasion it may be considered by the full planning committee on the recommendations of the planning officers. – We can attend the committee meeting with you or on your behalf, and present to the committee to answer questions.

Step 5 – Success, most planning applications are approved without issue, but if an application is refused it is important you get the right support and advice to see what your options are. If you wish to go to an appeal – We can be right by your side to provide additional information, and policy advice to get the best outcome from the Planning Inspectorate.

We can also provide our services from the other side, if you have concerns about a proposed planning application affecting you or your business?

We can help you to put across your objections in a concise way – don’t delay in getting involved.

If planning permission has already been granted, you have no right to appeal against the granting of permission, so don’t leave it too late.

We hope this helps you understand the process and how our involvement can make the process easier, positive and achieve the right result.

 For more information, please contact us at info@lavingham.com or send us a message via our social media platforms.