Forums Forums Wirral Information Wirral Council Planning enforcement

According to their website, WBC have issued NO planning enforcement notices since 2012, the last one being issued on the unlikely date of 25 Dec 2012!

These are notices requiring people to remove structures for which no planning permission has been given, or to stop work on it. If you ignore them, you can end up in court with a hefty fine to pay.

I have noticed a number of thoroughly horrible excrescences added to houses without any planning permission whatsoever, and it seems that seeking planning permission is voluntary activity. Once the structure has been up for a few years, without any objections, it cannot be subject to enforcement anyway, and you'll get away with it.

One could argue that town planning is a complete waste of time anyway, but we do have a planning department so evidently the council doesn't subscribe to this. It also seems to have an enforcement section, but as far as I can see it has been on (paid) holiday since 2012. They probably didn't come back from their Christmas break!

Has planning enforcement been completely abandoned?

You only need to see the number of retrospective applications to realise what is going on.

I've noticed roads where many properties have had changes that needed planning permission yet none have.

To be fair to the council, when they have said no and applicants have appealed through the various levels, have been over-ruled.

What I do blame the council for is being unbelievably picky when people are seeking planning permission. One I remember was an extension whose window was 13 feet from the nearest existing window but it was two inches higher and the planning department insisted it was made the same level.

Well, either the population of the Wirral has become very law abiding and listens carefully to the council telling them to take things down before rushing to do so (Up to Christmas day 2012 there were about 10 a year who didn't, and required enforcement notices) or the council is simply not doing its job.

I find it implausible that there has been a sudden outbreak of law-abiding, but equally implausible that a LGO was working on Christmas day to issue the last one!

I can think of one case (not a householder) where the applicants have been served an enforcement notice requiring them to remove some extremely ugly railings and have completely ignored it. The railings are still there many years after the notice was served! What on earth are the officers of the planning department doing?

If you are going to have town planning, it needs to be done properly. or entirely abolished, saving the cost of it. As it is, we are paying for a service that seems utterly ineffective, the worst possible outcome.

Its probably like many other council services, instead of inspection they ask for the public to be vigilant. This is fine where the council provide the information to the public ie on the Council website. Unfortunately the council don't put a lot of information on their website eg Legal notices that appear in the local papers do not, enforcement notices do not etc etc.

As far as I can see they are too lazy to even ask the public to be vigilant.

I know of a block of flats which DID have planning permission, but I believe the builders quietly added an additional storey! It was complete by the time the council noticed it had more than the permitted number of floors! The council spent a year or two scratching their heads, before deciding that there are people who need homes and getting them to knock a floor off was not in anyone's interest and eventually OKayed it!

It's not what I'd call enforcement, and if you don't enforce policies you can't really be too surprised if nobody takes much notice of them.

A local family have been served with an enforcement order to remove a large extension which has been built on the side of their home. Apparently it was built without planning permission. They are appealing.
Will be interesting to see how their appeal pans out. There is a lot of money at stake. I'm surprised that the builder went ahead wth the construction without first establishing full approval of the plans.

Well, is the enforcement notice on the web site?

The last one I can find is No 635 on Christmas day 2012.

Perhaps the effort of putting them on the website has proved too much for them!

Hava a look at no. 619. Issued on 28th July 2010, it has been completely ignored for the past five years!

What have the council been doing?

Yes, it most certainly is.

Planning permission was given in 2012 to remove the palisade fencing and replace it with mild steel bars topped with finials. This was part of the planning permission to put a junction on the New Ferry Bypass into Bedford Road East at the Royal Yacht Club. This planning permission expired March 2015 and no application has been submitted for an extension to this date.

Can you give me the number or better still the url where this can be found please. In the council's list of enforcement notices I can find none after number 635, published on Christmas day 2012.

take a look at the governments planning portal website to see what is and isn't allowed without planning permission, it's a lot more lenient nowadays than it used to be. I was told that it was done to kickstart the building industry when the recession hit. good rule of thumb though for anything major is always get the local building officer involved.