How to report building work that doesn't have planning permission

Our Planning Enforcement Team investigate building work that has been done without planning permission, or that does not follow the plans that we have approved. We also investigate the use of buildings without planning permission, and other breaches of planning rules such as unauthorised advertisements and illegal work to protected trees.

If you are concerned that something is being built, or property is being used without planning permission please do not hesitate to contact us.

If the work needs planning permission but it hasn't been applied for or granted, we will consider whether any problems are being caused. If we think that there are no issues, we may invite the owner to apply for 'retrospective planning permission', or decide to take no action.

If the work is more problematic, we may serve an enforcement notice requiring it to be undone or modified. There is a range of other powers available to us, depending upon the severity of the problem.

In extreme cases, we can serve notices requiring unauthorised work to stop immediately. Failure to comply with formal notices may result in prosecution.

Our Pollution Control Team may also be able to help if you are experiencing problems that aren't directly related to whether or not planning permission has been granted.