Refusals and Appeals – Page 5
Why applications are refused, how to fix a resubmission and how the appeal routes work.
Refusals and Appeals articles – page 5
240 articlesReasons for refusal that fail the precision test
A decision notice has to state the reasons clearly and precisely and specify the policies relied on. Plenty do not, and that changes how the appeal should be run.
Duplicate applications and the twin track approach
Running a revised application alongside an appeal keeps two routes open. Section 70B is the reason it sometimes fails before it starts.
Conditions offered at appeal and the inspector's discretion
An inspector who wants to allow an appeal still needs wording to attach to the permission. Supplying it, agreed with the council where possible, is among the best value work on an appeal.
Rebuttal proofs and when an inspector will read them
An inspector allows a rebuttal proof rather than the Rules granting one. It earns its place only where the other side has raised something you could not reasonably have anticipated.
What to do when a non material amendment is refused
A refused non material amendment cannot be appealed. The choice is between a section 73 application, a fresh application and changing the scheme, and the site programme usually decides.
Costs applications for procedural unreasonableness at appeal
Costs at appeal follow unreasonable behaviour, not the result. Procedural unreasonableness is the easier case to make, and it still needs evidence of wasted expense.
Ground (f) appeals and excessive enforcement requirements
Ground (f) is not a second bite at the merits. It attacks the requirements of the notice against the purpose the council chose, and it is won with a drafted alternative.
Ground (c) of an enforcement appeal and what it must prove
Ground (c) of a section 174 appeal asserts that what happened was never a breach at all. It is a legal argument with a factual foundation, and the burden sits on you.
Using appeal decisions in a planning application
Appeal decisions are material considerations, not precedent. The useful part is almost never the outcome. It is the reasoning an inspector used to get there, and whether that reasoning transfers to your site.
Third party involvement in someone else's appeal
Neighbours and parish councils can take part in an appeal they did not lodge. The deadlines are short, and householder appeals work differently from written representations.
Appealing a prior approval refusal under Class MA
A Class MA refusal is limited to the matters the Order allows, but inadequate natural light requires refusal. Here is how to sort the reasons and build the appeal.
Committee refusals against officer advice: appeal prospects
When a committee refuses against its officers, the authority's own report becomes your evidence. Here is how to read the reasons, test the costs position and choose between appeal and resubmission.
Heritage harm refusals and the statutory balance
A heritage appeal turns on significance, the level of harm, the statutory duty and the public benefits, in that order. Here is how the balance is built and where applicants lose it.
Highway safety refusals and visibility splay evidence
Visibility splay requirements follow recorded vehicle speeds, not the posted limit. Here is the evidence that answers a highway safety reason for refusal on a small residential access.
Loss of light refusals and the tests inspectors use
A loss of light refusal usually rests on a 45 degree line from a neighbour's window plus a view about dominance. Here is where those tests come from and what to draw before you appeal.
Overdevelopment refusals and the evidence that answers them
Overdevelopment is shorthand for breaches of adopted standards on density, amenity space, internal area and parking. Measure each one before you decide whether to redesign the scheme or appeal it.
Design refusals and how inspectors weigh a design code
A design reason for refusal stands or falls on the development plan. Here is how inspectors weigh adopted design codes against supplementary documents, and the context evidence that answers a character allegation.
Refused for insufficient information: how to recover
A refusal for insufficient information is a procedural failure, not a verdict on the design. Here is how to tell which kind you have, and whether a fee-exempt second application or an appeal is the faster route.
When the Inspectorate allocates a hearing instead
The Inspectorate chooses the procedure, not the appellant. Hearings suit disputes about interpretation and design where no cross-examination is needed.
Withdrawing a planning appeal and what follows
Withdrawal closes the appeal but does not undo the refusal. The costs exposure depends on timing, and a second appeal against the same decision is not available.
Appealing the loss of employment land or floorspace
Appeals against the loss of employment land turn on marketing records, viability arithmetic and whether the council's land supply figures survive testing.
Appealing a refusal on biodiversity or net gain grounds
Inspectors will not defer a survey that could change the design. This sets out how to answer adequacy refusals, dispute a metric, offer off-site units and decide whether to wait for a survey window.
Section 96A refusals and the absence of an appeal
Section 96A confers a discretionary power, not a right, so a refusal carries no appeal. This sets out the alternatives, the cumulative materiality test and the drop-in risk after Hillside.
There is no appeal against an Article 4 direction
An Article 4 direction cannot be appealed to the Planning Inspectorate. This explains the representation window, why a 12 month lead-in removes compensation, and why applying for permission is usually the better route.
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