A specialist area and the essence is to deal with the actual reasons for refusal as distinct from the perceived ones. Any neighbour objections to your application or those from the Parish or Town Council must be addressed and a firm strategy on any positive consultation responses honed to support an appeal. There are three […]
Read MoreThe local Planning Authority will often require an Archaeological Survey prior to, or alongside, the submission of a Planning Application. Procuro Planning Services have carried out many of these surveys and have never identified anything of archaeological, historic or other interest! A ‘watching’ brief of the development site may also be required in order to […]
Read MoreMany applicants love the idea of an original stone barn for conversion into a residential dwelling, giving a potential of isolation and land holding. Whilst this may well be a dream, it is important that feet are kept firmly on the ground! There are inherent problems with barn conversions which centre on achieving adequate daylight […]
Read MoreConditions imposed within a Planning Permission often include references to building materials required to be used in a development, this requires developers or their agents to take samples of proposed building materials to local Planning Authorities for approval. This process can cause difficulties, as samples may often be lost, with the consequence that, several years […]
Read MoreA variety of sites contain elements of contaminated land, whether old mine workings or lime quarries or former mining operations for coal and stone, however quite often Contaminated Land Reports are required for land that has been used for a variety of industrial purposes, particularly where lubricants have been present, for example, former vehicle haulage […]
Read MoreIt is generally possible to gain the costs of undertaking an Appeal from the local Planning Authority causing the Appeal. The cost regime now applies to all forms of Planning Appeal namely Written Representations, Hearings and Planning Appeals. Costs applications need to be made at the appropriate stage. It is best to make them in […]
Read MoreProcuro Planning Services can suggest sites within Local Planning Authorities’ areas which will have a planning value, often residential. Planning aspirations should be directed to sites which have a reasonable chance of gaining permission within a given timeframe. Those sites which have major constraints, i.e. are clearly well outside existing urban or rural settlements, are […]
Read MoreWith regard to surface water drainage, this is usually a soakaway event by means of permeable pavements or traditional soakaways dug away from the footings of the development building. There are standard methods to deal with and filtration rates for domestic and industrial soakaways. P.P.S. has experience with regard to surface water disposal on site […]
Read MoreMost planning applications now require the completion of a biodiversity checklist which is shown on the web. This in turn will lead potentially to Phase 1 Ecological Reports of the natural habitat to discover where there is the presence of, for example, badgers, bats, the range of Areas of Special Scientific Interest and special areas […]
Read MoreThese areas conjoin Planning Law and Planning Policy. If an enforcement is served by the Local Planning Authority with regard to development that they suggest is unauthorised, there is a strict time period to make an appeal against that Enforcement Notice. There are a variety of grounds and expert advice is needed in compiling the […]
Read MoreThe only exception to National Planning Policy is to allow the development of a single dwelling in the open countryside even in green belt. There are no others. The basis of the exemption is to allow individuals to build homes of their dreams within their available finances which genuinely enhance the local landscape and preserve […]
Read MoreEnquiries need to be made as to whether potential development land floods from either fluvial water (ie. from the land), or from tidal water, rivers or other tributaries which are affected by sea level. Whilst development can be undertaken on sites which do have a flood risk element, this depends entirely upon the category of […]
Read MoreCrown Land often incorporates major elements of Forested areas of England and Wales and there are special requirements to be aware of when making Planning Applications that may affect it. In former coal mining areas it is essential, prior to considering any development proposal that a Mining Search is carried out with the appropriate Authority […]
Read MoreP.P.S. has worked on the provision of a large range of various types and sizes of industrial units in Avonmouth in Bristol; Cirencester in Gloucestershire; the large Waterwells Development just outside Gloucester and also carried out specialist industrial use applications for non-conforming users, i.e. tarmac and bitumen and asphalt plant producers, dealing not only with […]
Read MoreThe Planning Court carry out Judicial Reviews of decisions made by Planning Authorities and hear other challenges to planning decisions. These include appeals and applications relating to ….. Planning permission Development consent Highways and other Rights of Way Decisions under environmental legislation The Planning Court is part of the Administrative Court and a special […]
Read MoreDepending on the category of the landscape in which the planning application is made, which could for example be Special Landscape, Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Great Landscape Value or Green Belt, a landscaping strategy needs to be presented to the Local Planning Authority who will have specialist landscape officers. An Area of Outstanding Natural […]
Read MoreIf certain uses have been apparent in relation to buildings and land for a finite number of years these uses can become lawful, which means that the LPA cannot take Enforcement action to stop the activity. It should be noted that a Certificate of Lawfulness is not the same as Planning Consent; for example, if […]
Read MoreP.P.S. has carried out a variety of projects in the leisure and tourist industry, from simple bed and breakfast conversions and conversions of redundant rural buildings for that purpose, to Travel Lodge construction and justification, importantly in Open Countryside locations – a prime example being The Grafton Inn on the A49 between Ross-on-Wye and Herefordshire. […]
Read MoreThere are approximately 470,000 Listed buildings in England and Wales. It is sometimes surprising to find out why a building is Listed although on obtaining a copy of a Listing from the English Heritage it may be found that, fortunately, the building is Listed for historical rather than architectural reasons or that only part of […]
Read MoreP.P.S. has experience of promoting mixed use and residential sites for a variety of new planning uses in the Local Plan process. As a Local Planning Authority reviews it Plan and introduces new core strategies, there are opportunities within the strategy and also in the documents which accompany them, namely an Allocations Development Plan, to […]
Read MoreP.P.S. often handle applications whereby an enquirer seeks to establish a mobile home on site. This may be in relation to agricultural or other rural enterprise projects and we are experienced in the requirements to facilitate the provision of such accommodation, which is generally for a three-year period, leading ultimately to a permanent dwelling, subject […]
Read MoreBy their very nature, these are often built on land adjoining town or village centers, but quite often within the open countryside by conversion. They are an increasingly important development aspect to consider – as the population of England and Wales increases in age, and also because they are generally not subject to the stringent […]
Read MoreAn Outline Planning Application can be undertaken to find out whether the Local Planning Authority is broadly supportive of a development proposal. Great care should be taken to reserve certain matters for which a decision is not required at this initial stage… eg highways access, scale of development and landscaping. Procuro Planning Services can advise […]
Read MoreIt is possible to reverse a Planning Appeal Decision, but only on very strict legal grounds. The decision of an Inspector can be quashed by the High Court but the Appeal case will then be remitted to the Planning Inspectorate for a fresh airing, however with guidance from the bench. Costs are at stake and […]
Read MoreThis is the most common form of Planning Application made and enables a house, bungalow or other structure to be built on land. There is scope for extensions and alterations to a principal dwelling, outbuildings and addition of conservatories (many of which operations do not require planning consent). Conversions of existing properties to flats or […]
Read MoreThese were developed to enable the local Planning/Highways Authorities, under the guise of the local community, to receive financial contributions as the result of a development.. eg payments towards such projects as highway improvements, community facilities or leisure improvements in the area. It is vital to ensure that the benefits the community are to receive […]
Read MoreIt is vital that all land boundaries are accurately recorded and that hedgerows and trees within, adjacent or adjoining the application site (within 5 metres) are correctly identified. Procuro Planning Services can carry out measured land and topographical surveys by qualified surveyors. A measured survey will enable the identification of constraints, such as areas which […]
Read MoreLocal Highways Authorities may require Transport Assessment Surveys to calculate whether increased traffic, as a consequence of a development, has an effect on local highways networks or road safety. If it does have an effect, and it is argued by the Local Highways Authorities that this is significant, financial contributions may be sought with regard […]
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