Partner Karen Jones, in our Planning & Environmental Law team looks at a recent case that looked at whether the use of a house as part home, part floristry business amounted to a material change of use.
Planning permission is required for the development of land and the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 defines development as:
“the carrying out of building, engineering, mining or other operations in, on, over or under land, or the making of any material change in the use of any buildings or other land”.
There is no statutory definition of what a material change of use is and in each circumstance it will be a matter of fact and degree. Section 55(2)(d) of the 1990 Act provides that “the use of any buildings or other land within the curtilage of a dwellinghouse for any purpose incidental to the enjoyment of the dwellinghouse as such” does not amount to development.
A recent appeal decision (APP/E2530/X/20/3259140) provides a useful reminder of the fact based approach to assessing when a material change of use has occurred.
The Appellant owned a dwellinghouse which she occupied as her home. In addition the Appellant operated a floristry business from the house. The Appellant had made an application to the Local Planning Authority to establish the lawfulness of this use which had been refused.
The Inspector had to establish whether the use of the house as part home, part floristry business amount to a material change of use and therefore required planning permission or whether the use was not material and therefore lawful as ancillary to the residential use of the property.
The Inspector considered the below evidence of the Appellant to be important in his determination:
- The business did not operate every day of the week but did involve some weekend working;
- The Appellant provided flowers for circa 60 weddings per year;
- In any given week there was an average of 2.75 deliveries and eight client visits per week;
- The kitchen, conservatory and a room above the conservatory were all used for the business, whether preparing the flower arrangements or receiving clients for appointments.
The Inspector considered that the business was operating on a significant scale and referred to the number of rooms dedicated to the business, the floristry business providing for above one wedding per week on average across the year, the number of movements for deliveries and customer appointments and the hours the Appellant confirmed she dedicated to the running of the business.
The inspector then turned to the impact of the use on the character of the use of the property. The Inspector considered that the number of deliveries was likely to cause disturbance and nuisance to occupiers of a neighbouring property and that there was limited parking provision which was insufficient for the business use.
Having considered all of the relevant factors the Inspector concluded that the business use had brought about a material change of use of the property and accordingly dismissed the appeal.
Commentary
As always, each determination as to whether a material change of use has occurred will depend on the facts of an individual case. If you have concern that the use of your property has changed and that planning permission is required, you should seek advice from a legal professional who can advise you on whether development has occurred. Our specialist Planning & Environmental Law team can advise on such matters.
For further information or legal advice, please contact law@blandy.co.uk or call 0118 951 6800.
This article is intended for the use of clients and other interested parties. The information contained in it is believed to be correct at the date of publication, but it is necessarily of a brief and general nature and should not be relied upon as a substitute for specific professional advice.
