Business owner fined for breaching planning laws
A Bognor Regis business owner who erected a two-metre-high metal fence at the access to their field has been fined for not seeking planning permission.
Mr Callan Wood, Director of CW Bikes Ltd appeared at Crawley Magistrates’ Court on 14 February 2023, the company was fined £1,923 for failing to comply with an enforcement notice and ordered to pay a £796 victim surcharge. CW Bikes Ltd were also told to pay £800 of legal costs to Arun District Council.
In 2021, the two-metre-high metal fence with gates was installed on land at Brooks Lane, Bognor Regis. As planning permission had not been sought, a planning enforcement notice was served in January 2022. The notice required either the reduction in height of the gates to one metre or their removal.
CW Bikes Ltd was prosecuted for not complying with the notice by the required date, although the gates were removed from the area subject to the notice the week before the court hearing. The company initially denied the offence but later changed the plea to guilty.
Councillor Terence Chapman, Chair of the Planning Committee at Arun District Council, said:
“This case sends out a clear message that anyone cannot build what they want to if it contravenes planning laws as they may be asked to take it down again. This fence was an eyesore and was subject of numerous complaints, so the council is pleased that we were able to use planning laws to get the right outcome.”
You may need planning permission to make improvements or changes to a property. To find out more, visit Find out if you need planning permission | Arun District Council