Overview and guiding principles
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Introduction
The County Council is the minerals and waste planning authority
for West Sussex. We have a duty to control development
associated with mineral extraction and processing, and the
management of waste. This involves any such operation or
change of use that occurs in, on, over, or under land. We are
also responsible for the County Council’s own development, such as
schools, libraries, and fire stations.
Development may be authorised by planning permission granted by the
County Council or by the Secretary of State (e.g. if the proposal
is granted on appeal). Under planning law, some development
does not require planning permission; for example, it is ‘permitted
development’ or because it has been established for a long time (in
other words, a Certificate of Lawfulness of Existing Use or
Development may be granted).
Find out more about legislation, guidance and good
practice relating to planning compliance and
enforcement.
Other regulatory bodies are responsible for controlling
development. The district and borough councils in West Sussex
deal with all planning matters not related to minerals, waste, and
the County Council’s own developments. The enforcement of
pollution prevention control and waste licences is a matter for the
Environment Agency.
Find out more about roles and
responsibilities.
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Monitoring and compliance of authorised
development
We carry out monitoring on mineral and waste sites that have
planning permission to ensure that the development (including the
use of the land) takes place in the right way. In other words,
the development is in ‘compliance’ with the terms of the planning
conditions attached to the permission.
In this way, the impact of the authorised development, such as
on the environment and local amenity, can be controlled.
Find out more about monitoring
and compliance.
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Unauthorised development
Unauthorised developments - those that do not have the necessary
planning permission - can take place. Although it is not a
criminal offence to carry out development without first obtaining
planning permission, it is a contravention of the planning
laws.
We have powers to enforce those laws although the decision to take
enforcement action is discretionary and must be well
founded. We have to decide on the evidence presented,
following a complete investigation, whether it is expedient and in
the public interest to take action.
Find out more about unauthorised
development.
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Investigation
Development that does not comply with the terms of a planning
permission or have planning permission (and therefore
unauthorised) is known as a ‘breach of planning
control’. Unless reported anonymously, we investigate all
possible breaches of planning control thoroughly and consistently,
and take account of all the relevant facts.
If you suspect that planning conditions have been breached or
unauthorised development is taking place or has happened, please
report the problem to us.
Following investigation of an alleged breach of planning
control, the decision to take, or not to take, formal enforcement
action is within the discretion of the County Council. The
decision must be rational and must accord with policies in the
‘development plan’ unless there are good reasons (known as
‘material considerations’) that indicate otherwise. The
decision must also be capable of public scrutiny.
Particular attention must be paid to the need to protect sensitive
areas, sites, and features that are an important part of the
natural and historic environment from any actual or potential
harm.
For authorised development, particular regard must be had to any
conditions imposed on the planning permission to protect or
mitigate environmental or amenity impacts, and without which
planning consent would not have been granted.
If there has been a breach of planning control, we can ‘invite’ a
planning application to be made to ‘regularise’ unauthorised
development or to take enforcement action to control or stop the
development.
Find out more about the investigation of potential
breaches.
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Enforcement
Formal enforcement action will only be taken when the breach of
planning control is unacceptable on planning grounds and it is in
the public interest to do so. For example, formal enforcement
action should not be taken against a minor or technical breach of
control that causes little or no harm to the environment or to
local amenity.
The precise form of any action taken against a breach of planning
control is at our discretion, subject to Judicial Review.
Any formal action taken must be appropriate and
proportionate. The scale and persistence/repetition of a
breach of planning control must be taken into account in
determining the nature of any enforcement action.
In considering whether to proceed with formal enforcement action,
account must be taken of the possibility of
maladministration. Maladministration could arise due to
‘under-enforcement’ - for example, where enforcement action was
clearly necessary and has not been taken - or due to
‘over-enforcement’, such as where enforcement action is taken but
it is disproportionate to the harm caused.
Find out more about enforcement.
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