Farmers Weekly Business Clinic: Do I need planning permission to replace a wall with a fence?

A farm is located almost a mile down an unclassified, single rack, council-maintained lane. The lane eventually meets a busy, 30-mile an-hour commuter route at a crossroads, where visibility to spot oncoming traffic is poor. In fact, there have been numerous instances of vehicles only narrowly avoiding colliding with motorists on the busier road when leaving the lane.

To reduce the instances (and likelihood) of these collisions, the owners of a stone wall located at the junction would like to cut back a visibility splay and erect a new post and rail fence.

But can this be carried out without consent?

In this month’s Business Clinic, Alex Madden, partner and head of planning at Thrings, considers the options available to the owners of the wall in terms of planning permission and ownership of the splay, and explains the potential benefit of early engagement with stakeholders such as the local planning authority, highways and conservation groups, the parish council and local residents.

Click here to read the full article in Farmers Weekly.