Report a breach of Planning Control

How to Report a Breach

If you think something is being built or changed without the right permission, you can report it. Planning Enforcement will investigate the issue and decide what needs to happen next.

Report a breach of planning control 

What Information You Need to Give

When you report a breach, please tell us:

• the address of the breach
• what the problem is,  please explain clearly and add photos if you can
• your name, address, and how we can contact you

Your details are kept confidential. We will not investigate reports without contact details.

You can contact your local councillor to report the issue on your behalf.
Please read our Planning Privacy Notice to learn how your information is used.

What Planning Enforcement Does

Planning Enforcement helps make sure buildings and land are used in the right way. We investigate things like:

• building something without the right permission 
• using land or buildings for something different without permission
• not following conditions set when planning permission was granted

We also check other issues such as:

• work done on a Listed Building without permission
• putting up adverts that need permission
• damaging or removing protected trees or trees in a Conservation Area
• untidy land or buildings
• putting up a letting board where this is not allowed
• changing a house into a student house in a restricted area (you can check restrictions using our interactive map)

Not all changes need planning permission. You can learn more on our Is Planning Permission Needed? page and the Planning Portal

What Happens After You Report a Problem

When you report a breach, we:

• check what is happening
• try to fix the problem by negotiating with the person responsible if appropriate
• may ask them to make a planning application or works to resolve the issue

If needed, we can take formal action. We only do this when those responsible are unable to satisfactorily resolve the matter.

Before You Report a Problem

You can look at our Planning Public Access page to check:

• whether planning permission has been granted
• what conditions were added

When Planning Enforcement Cannot Help

We will not investigate:

• neighbour disputes
• land boundaries or ownership disputes
• works to party walls
• fly tipping or fly posting
• high hedges
• smells, noise and pollution
• problems with the highway
• dangerous structures

Planning Enforcement Register

You can look at our Enforcement Register to see notices from the last five years. You can search by address, ward, or case number.
This information is only a guide and does not replace an official local land charges search.