The County Council has a duty to investigate such complaints about development, which may have been carried out without planning permission. This could involve the unauthorised erection or extensions of a building, the unauthorised change of use of a building or failure to comply with conditions attached to a planning permission.

You can report development which is occurring:-

l without planning permission
l without complying with conditions that have been attached to a permission
l which is not in accordance with an approved plan

Please complete and submit the online or downloadable form to send us your complaint.

This page explains the procedures the Council will follow in dealing with unauthorised development. It also sets out the Council's policy in the way in which it will deal with complaints about unauthorised development.

In all cases the Council will make every effort to ensure that the action taken is in proportion to the breach of planning law involved. The Council will endeavour to negotiate a solution to the problem that satisfies the law and all parties involved.

The Council will not become involved in matters that are purely neighbourly disputes and, in particular, cannot become involved in boundary disputes.

What Information Do We Need When You Make A Complaint?

We will need the precise location of the site or property to which the complaint relates.

The exact nature of concern i.e. the potential breach of planning control. 

An indication of any harm caused/being caused.

If possible, the identity of the person/ organisation responsible and the date and/or time the breach began.

What Happens To Your Complaint?

We will acknowledge receipt of your complaint within 3 working days.

An initial investigation will be carried out within 5 working days.

Findings

We will acknowledge receipt of your complaint within three working days.

Confidentiality

Every effort will be made to keep the identity of the complainant confidential. In many cases the original source of the complaint is an officer of the Council.

However those who are close to the site of the alleged planning contravention often provide the best evidence.

There are likely to be cases where the reluctance of a complainant to be identified and provide evidence may seriously affect the outcome.