RURAL PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT

In the current agricultural climate, many farmers and landowners are choosing to diversify their business. Whether you want to lift agricultural ties or convert your redundant agricultural buildings to residential properties, we can advise on all aspects of the planning.

Key Contacts

Alex Madden

Partner 0117 930 9575

Rosalyn Trotman

Partner 0117 930 9577

Rebecca Stanton

Associate 0117 930 9550

Fred Quartermain

Partner 0117 930 9572

EXPERIENCED AGRICULTURAL SPECIALISTS

The UK’s rural planning system continues to evolve. If you are devising rural development projects, the government’s pledge to achieve localism in England is gathering pace and is likely to impact your proposals, while in Wales you may be affected by the shift to regional decision making.

Our rural planning and development experts can advise you on planning permissions, securing necessary consents, permitted development rights to repurpose agricultural buildings, and the Crichel Down Rules. In addition, we also provide dispute support, advising in prosecutions and defending against non-compliance enforcement issues such as Breaches of Planning, including Tree Preservation Orders, Conservation Area Consent, HMOs (and related licensing) and Breaches of Conditions.

Whether you need robust legal advice regarding a dispute or prosecution, or are seeking specialist advisory, negotiation and settlement agreement support, we provide tailored, commercially focused and pragmatic advice to support your objectives.

Our Agriculture Team has been involved in a number of high-profile cases in this area. Highlights include:

  • Successfully applying for statutory review of a planning inspector’s decision in an enforcement notice appeal relating to mobile homes which was quashed by the High Court. The Secretary of State was ordered to pay the client’s costs amounting to around 90% of their total costs
  • Providing strategic legal advice to a client resubmitting a proposed major application regarding an anaerobic digestion plant in a Metropolitan Green Belt and Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
  • Advising the owners of a 250KW wind turbine – granted consent but built in an alternative location. Destined for the High Court, this case involves advising on regularising the wind turbine’s position, and encompasses issues including non-material and material amendment applications
  • Advising on a prosecution for breach of an enforcement notice, securing the local authority’s withdrawal of the prosecution case and a defendant’s costs order
  • Reviewing a planning consent for a residential scheme applied for by Fleming and Others and successfully securing a Protective Costs Order against Wiltshire Council and Oaksey Park Limited
  • Successfully defending Fuller & McVeigh against proceedings brought by Milton Keynes Council, and obtaining a costs award
  • Successfully appealing two planning enforcement notices issued by Wiltshire Council relating to the conversion of a redundant farm building into residential buildings
  • Securing a Protective Costs order for a resident’s group as part of a planning consent for a residential scheme
 

Our expertise in this area encompasses:

  • Appeals against enforcement notices
  • Appeals against the refusal/non-determination of planning applications
  • Certificates of lawfulness applications
  • Community Infrastructure Levy
  • Compulsory purchase
  • Crichel Down Rules
  • Defending planning prosecutions
  • EIA development
  • Farm diversification projects
  • Listed buildings consent heritage assets and conservation areas
  • Local designated green space
  • Planning and infrastructure agreements
  • Planning objections
  • Permitted development rights and prior approval notices
  • Removal of agricultural occupancy conditions
  • Rural worker dwellings
  • Securing planning permission for agricultural dwellings, buildings and diversification schemes
  • Statutory appeals and judicial review
  • Town and village greens
  • Waste and renewables, including wind turbines, hydroelectricity and anaerobic digestion plants
 


Contact

THRINGS LLP’S ‘HIGHLY COMPETENT’ TEAM IS RECOMMENDED FOR RURAL PLANNING, AND ADVISES MEMBERS OF RURAL ORGANISATIONS, INCLUDING NFU. THE LEGAL 500

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