Making your planning appeal
2 Making an appeal
2.1 Only the person who made the application for planning permission
can appeal. To make a valid appeal, you must use an official form. If
the site is in England, you can get forms from:
Customer Services Team
The Planning Inspectorate
Temple Quay House
2
The Square
Temple Quay
Bristol,
BS1 6PN.
Phone: 0117 372 6372
Please tell us whether your appeal is to do with planning permission
or listed building or conservation area consent, as the forms are different. Don’t leave it too late – remember the six-month
time limit.
2.2 You should fill in three copies of the appeal form. One is for us,
one is for the LPA and the other is for you to keep.
Grounds of appeal
2.3 Your grounds of appeal made on the appeal form are your representations
for your case. It is important that you set them out clearly. You need
to explain why you disagree with the LPA’s decision. You should
deal with each of the LPA’s reasons for turning your application
down. It isn’t enough just to say that you don’t accept the
LPA’s reasons.
If you don’t give your grounds of appeal, your appeal may not be
valid. If there is anything else you want us to consider, you should
tell us clearly but briefly. The LPA can then comment on these issues
when they make their statement.
2.4 If you want to make a point that would be best illustrated by a plan
or photograph (for example if it would involve cutting down trees or
affect a neighbour’s property), you should send copies with the
appeal form to us and the LPA.
2.5 If we consider that any of your representations contain racist or
abusive comments, we will send them back to you before the Inspector
sees them. If you take out the racist or abusive comments, you can send
your comments back to us. But you must send them back before the time
limit ends.
The choice of procedure
2.6 If everyone agrees, we will decide the case on the basis of written
exchanges of information from you, the LPA and anyone else who has an
opinion on your appeal. The information could include maps, plans and
photographs but not oral evidence. It depends on the choice of procedure
whether we also accept video or sound tapes - see paragraph 2.17 for
more information. Whichever procedure is used, the Inspector will visit
the site to judge the effect of your proposal on the area.
2.7 If you, the LPA or we do not agree to the written procedure, we will
arrange a hearing or an inquiry. You can get more details of the different
procedures in sections 5, 6 and 7.
2.8 When you are deciding what procedure to use, you should take into
account the following points.
- The result of your appeal will always depend on its planning merits.
- The written procedure is usually quicker and cheaper.
- A hearing is an informal way to give evidence. Formal cross-examination is not usually allowed.
- You or the LPA can ask for an inquiry, or we can decide that this is the best procedure for your appeal.
- At an inquiry you can talk to our Inspector personally and challenge any evidence put forward against your appeal.
- The possibility of costs being awarded. There is more information
about this in section 8.
2.9 To avoid extra costs and to get a decision as quickly as possible, most people only ask for a hearing or inquiry if they think it is necessary. The written procedure is the most common.
Appeals involving outline planning permission
2.10 If you are appealing because your LPA has refused outline planning permission, you should remember that any details on the application plan will be treated as part of the appeal proposals unless it clearly says on the plan that those details are only shown as an example. For example, the position of the proposed building or the ways of getting to it. If you don’t do this, even if the Inspector thinks the development is satisfactory in principle, he or she could still turn down your appeal if any of these details aren’t acceptable.
Appeals against conditions
2.11 There are two ways you can ask for any conditions that the LPA
have attached to your planning permission which you think are unreasonable
to be altered or removed.
2.12 You can appeal against one or more of the conditions within six
months of the LPA’s decision. We must receive all your
appeal documents within the time limit. In cases like this,
we will look at the whole
permission again. If the Inspector thinks the conditions are wrong,
he or she can change or remove them. They can also:
- change other conditions which you haven’t challenged;
- add more conditions; or
- take away your permission completely.
But if the Inspector thinks that any other part of the permission (that
is, a part of the permission that you haven’t appealed against)
should be changed, we will write to you to ask what you think, unless
we already know from the written information we have. If the Inspector
wants to add stricter conditions or take away planning permission altogether,
we will give you a chance to withdraw your appeal and keep the LPA’s
decision and their conditions.
2.13 The other way you can ask for the LPA’s conditions to be changed
is by making another application to them. If you do this and you don’t
get the decision you want, you can still appeal against that decision
without the original permission being taken away. As with all appeals,
we must receive all your appeal documents within the time limit.
Certificates and other relevant documents
2.14 You need to fill in a certificate about who owns the land with
every application for planning permission and your appeal. The LPA
send certificates
out with the application and we send certificates out with the appeal
forms. If we do not receive these within the time limit, we will
not deal with your appeal.
2.15 The certificate is to make sure that the people who own the
site know that you are making an appeal, so that they have a chance
to comment.
There are four different certificates, each covering different circumstances.
We send out guidance notes to help you choose the right certificate
and explain how you should fill it in with each appeal form.
2.16 If you are appealing about approval of the details of (the 'matters reserved' under) an outline
planning permission that your LPA has already given, or for approval
that a condition of your planning permission says you need, you must
send us copies of:
- the original application for planning permission;
- the permission itself; and
- any plans the LPA approved.
If we do not receive these within the time limit, we will not deal with your appeal.
Further details on this can be viewed via the Planning Portal
Video and audio evidence
2.17 We can’t accept video or audio evidence for appeals dealt
with by written exchanges. This is because we cannot be certain
that everyone involved in the appeal will have suitable equipment to
play
the evidence, or that identical copies have been sent to everyone.
You can send a written summary of the content of the video or audio
evidence, including photographs, to us and the LPA with your appeal documents.
2.18 At a hearing or inquiry, the Inspector will decide whether to consider
any video or audio evidence. They will let you know their decision
when the hearing or inquiry opens. You must contact the LPA to
find out whether
they have suitable equipment to use at the hearing or inquiry,
or if they will allow you to use your own.
Regulating Recorded Evidence
2.19 Recorded evidence (video, audio or other recorded evidence) is governed by legislation. Any recorded evidence sent to us must have been obtained legally.
Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 200 ('RIPA')
RIPA does not prohibit individuals from recording evidence as long as the recording is for their own use.
Recordinf evidence is prohibited if the evidence is made available to another person or organisation and, where
necessary, if those involved did not give permission for its use or for the recording to take place. Those involved must also be given the opportunity to confirm the recording is accurate. If not, we will not accept it.
Planning obligations
2.20 Sometimes you may want to enter into a planning obligation
to sort out unresolved objections at the same time you first apply
for
planning
permission. If this is the case, you should send us a copy of the
planning obligation you have signed with your appeal papers. Planning
obligations
are legally binding and you should think about getting legal advice
before you sign one.
2.21 If your appeal is being dealt with by the written method and
you and the LPA decide to enter into an agreement while we are
dealing with your appeal, you must send us a signed and dated copy
of the
agreement
no later than 9 weeks from the start date of your appeal. If your appeal is being dealt
with by a hearing or inquiry, you must send us a draft copy ten
working days
before the hearing or inquiry opens. You must send us a finished
copy
by the time the hearing or inquiry closes. We will issue the Inspector’s
decision even if you and the LPA are still discussing the agreement.
Sending in the appeal form
2.22 You must make sure that we receive copies of all the relevant
documents. You must send a copy of the appeal form direct to the
LPA, with copies
of any documents or plans you are sending to us that the LPA haven’t
already got.
You need to show clearly where the site is by sending
us a location plan, using a street map or a 1:10,000 Ordnance Survey
map.
The address to send your appeal to is shown on the appeal form
and on page 8 of this guide.
Checklist
2.23 Before you send the appeal form to us and the LPA, you should make sure that you have included:
- the right appeal certificate to say who owns the land;
- a copy of your application to the LPA;
- a copy of the certificate concerning the ownership of the land that you sent with the original planning application;
- a list of, and copies of, all relevant documents, drawings and plans which were part of the original planning application, including an environmental statement, if you sent one with your application, or if the LPA asked for one;
- a copy of any decision by the LPA that the application has to be dealt with under the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations 1999 (a screening opinion);
- copies of all relevant letters (including any letters or drawings sent to the LPA changing the application);
- a copy of the LPA’s decision (if there is one);
- a plan showing the site in relation to two well-established named roads; and
- if you want approval of details of an application, a copy of the original application for outline planning permission, the plan and the outline permission itself.
If the LPA haven’t seen any of the documents you are sending
to us, please remember to send copies to them. We explain what
you must
send on the appeal form.
Remember, if we don’t receive all your appeal
documents within the six-month time limit, we won’t
deal with your appeal.
Arranging the hearing, inquiry or site visit
2.24 We try our best to make the arrangements for a hearing,
inquiry or site visit as early as possible. If you and the
LPA agree to
the first date we offer, we can better manage our Inspector
resources.
Each party is allowed to refuse a date offered for a hearing
or an inquiry only once before we fix a date, time and place.
Once we have fixed a date, it is not easy for us to change
it, and we will only agree to do so in exceptional circumstances.
Suspending action on your appeal (abeyance)
2.25 We are committed to dealing with all appeals as quickly
as possible.
We do not normally agree to hold up appeals, but in exceptional
circumstances we may agree to do so for a short period
of time. For example, to
allow you and the LPA to come to an agreement that will
lead to the appeal
being withdrawn.
However, we will only agree to do this if we are satisfied
that it is the most appropriate way forward, and have evidence
that
a quick
conclusion
is likely.
If you want us to hold an appeal in abeyance, you should
write to the case officer. We will ask the LPA for their
comments.
Even if
they
agree, we may not. It is for us to decide.
Withdrawing your appeal
2.26 You can withdraw your appeal at any time before we give our decision.
You may want to do this if, for example, you and the LPA agree a different
proposal, or realise that a new application will sort out your differences
without an appeal.
If you decide you want to withdraw your appeal, you should phone your
case officer straightaway and then write to confirm the withdrawal, giving
the appeal reference number. You should also tell the LPA immediately.
This is especially important if we have arranged for a hearing or inquiry
to take place. If you unreasonably withdraw your appeal after we have
written to you to tell you the hearing or inquiry date, you may have
to pay the costs of the other people involved in the hearing or inquiry.
Section 8 has more information about costs.
