Our neighbours’ social club turned a grassed area into a beer garden with six benches at the front of the club and raised the level, so the beer garden overlooks into our property and neighbouring properties.
We challenged the council as it had no planning permission. The council has stated it does not need planning permission after they took one brick level of wall down from the beer garden and have said people cannot be in the beer garden after 10pm.
We have disagreed as noise, environmental concerns, etc. were not taken into account. We challenged the council, but they will not provide any information as to why it did not require planning permission.
This impacts at least four neighbouring properties. Is there a way we can get compensation and force retrospect planning permission as none of the neighbouring properties were consulted?
A neighbouring social club has turned a grassed area into a noisy beer garden that overlooks our properties
Myra Butterworth, MailOnline Property expert, replies: The new garden set up sounds like a nuisance for the neighbour properties and it must be deeply frustrating that you are not getting answers from the council.
While the council may have good reason for not requiring planning permission, it would be helpful if it provided an explanation behind its decision so you are able to understand the situation.
We speak to a planning expert how about to best persuade a council to provide the information you require and even ultimately change course, so that it takes further action.
Martin Gaine, a chartered town planner, explains: Often it is the small things that have the biggest impact on neighbours’ quality of life.
It may not seem like a big deal for a social club to put out six benches on some grass to the front of the building, but the use of those benches can mean punters overlook neighbours’ gardens and generate noise as well as some disturbance.
It seems to me that this new beer garden may well need planning permission – for the increased land levels, the placement of benches and the change of use of the land to the front to a beer garden.
Residents challenged the council, but were not provided with any information about why planning permission was not required
However, the council might have good reason for judging that planning permission isn’t required in this case.
Perhaps it has decided that the increase in land levels is so minor that it doesn’t count as an act of development.
The benches could be considered to be temporary structures and it may have decided that the creation of a beer garden on land attached to the social club was not a change of use (in industry jargon, that the beer garden is ‘ancillary’ to the club’s use).
The council also has the power to decide that planning permission is required but to come to a judgement that there is no need for any further action.
The planners have wide discretion to decide that a breach of planning is minor and that it is not in the public interest to take it further.
Whether a breach is minor is clearly a matter of opinion and it is sometimes only through the persistent efforts of local people that action is taken.
You therefore need to get to the bottom of the matter.
Ask for a clear written explanation from the planning team of why they have decided that planning permission is not required. I
f that explanation is not forthcoming, or is not persuasive, speak to your local ward councillors – they are your representatives within the council machinery.
If in doubt, seek the advice of a qualified planning consultant, who can review the council’s explanation and let you know whether it stands up to scrutiny.
Persuading a council to change course can be a slow process, but you can continue to exert pressure through the planners, councillors and the council’s own complaints process.
If, after all that, you are determined that the council is stubbornly and unfairly refusing to act, you should consider formal legal action, for which you will need the services of a good solicitor.
Martin Gaine is a chartered town planner and author of ‘How to Get Planning Permission – An Insider’s Secrets
