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PLANNING APPEALS
HOME PAGE | CONTENTS | APPEALS
MAIN |CONDUCTING APPEALS
PUBLIC INQUIRY
Public
Inquiries are conducted in accordance with the Town & Country Planning
(Inquiries Procedure)(England) Rules 2000 and the Town & Country Planning
Appeals (Determination by Inspectors) (Inquiries Procedure)(England) Rules
2000.
The
difference between these two sets of rules is simply that the former are those
which are applied to the Secretary of State in considering Planning Appeals,
whereas those in the latter govern circumstances where the Appeal is to be
heard by an Inspector appointed by the Secretary of State.
The
rules are laid down to provide a framework within which Planning Inquiries may
proceed efficiently and effectively and without prejudicing the impartiality of
proceedings.
Failure
by any party to comply with the rules could result in an award of costs, if it
can be shown that the failure incurred the other party in unnecessary
expenditure due to unreasonable behaviour. (See costs for further information).
Public Inquiries are conducted in a
formal framework and you are strongly advised to seek legal advice before
proceeding, particularly if you intend conducting your own case.
Either
party may request the Appeal to be conducted by way of a Public Inquiry
with evidence being given in a formal manner before an Inspector. In larger
cases and some specific circumstances, the Secretary of State may make the
final decision following advice received from an Inspector appointed to hear
the evidence at an Inquiry.
INITIAL PROCEDURE
The
initial part of the procedure follows the standard format; with grounds of
appeal being submitted, acknowledgement by the Inspectorate, the Planning Authority
producing their questionnaire, together with confirmation of whether they wish
to hear the Appeal by way of a Public Inquiry.
On
receipt of the Appeal form and relevant documentation, the Inspectorate will
send out notification of the start date and the timetable for conducting the
Inquiry. Notwithstanding any request for a Public Inquiry, the Inspectorate
will give consideration to whether the Appeal is more suitably dealt with by
way of a Hearing, notwithstanding the request by the other party.
The
Case Officer for the Inspectorate will contact both parties to establish an
appropriate date or dates for the Public Inquiry and each party will have an
opportunity to refuse one date before arrangements are settled.
Both
parties are required to produce a Statement of Case.
The
Statement of Case contains a full outline of the case to be put at the Inquiry,
together with a list of relevant documents, plans etc. This Statement ensures
that the parties know all about each other’s case at an early stage, both in
terms of ensuring that evidence is not "hidden" and to encourage a
better understanding of the issues. This might encourage negotiation before the
Inquiry over misunderstandings or alternatives that may resolve the problem. If
remedial arrangements are possible, then this early exchange of statements
helps to avoid late cancellations or requests or postponement of Inquiries
nearer the established date.
The
Local Authority are required to send two copies of their Statement of Case to
the Inspectorate and a copy to any statutory party within 6 weeks of the
relevant date (ie the start date notified initially to all parties); Or 4 weeks
after any pre-inquiry meeting.
The
Appellant must send two copies of their Statement of Case to the Inspectorate
and a copy to any statutory party within 6 weeks of the relevant date (ie the
start date notified initially to all parties); Or 4 weeks after any pre-inquiry
meeting.
The
Inspectorate will then forward copies of the Statements to the respective
parties.
Further
information or receipt of particular documents referred to in the Statements
can be requested through the Inspectorate, and the Inspector can also request
further information from either party. In all cases two copies must be sent to
the Inspectorate within the time specified.
Strict adherence to timescales is required. Late submissions
will normally be disregarded.
Previously
the rules allowed a later transmission for the Appellant, however, the new
rules now require simultaneous exchange in order to avoid
"cross-examination by post". The new rules now place the Inspectorate
in the role of 'Post Office', forwarding the various documents between the
parties to speed up the process.
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If you are a third party who has made representations initially
at the planning application stage, you should re-submit these, together with
any additional comments, at the Appeal stage. Although your original representations
will be considered in the general paperwork, any further written comments at
the Appeal stage will be taken into account. You also have an opportunity to
appear at the Public Inquiry to make any representations verbally to the
Inspector. The Secretary of State may require you to supply a Statement of Case in advance of the Inquiry, which should be sent within four weeks of the request. |
Copies
of third party representations will be circulated to the principal parties. It
is often better to incorporate any comments on third party representations
within your general Proof of Evidence rather than singly in an ad hoc manner.
The
appellant or the planning authority may comment in writing upon any Statement
of Case within 9 weeks of the starting date. Two copies of any comments shall
be sent to the Inspectorate for forwarding accordingly.
Third
parties who have submitted a Statement on their own behalf may comment upon any
of the other Statements not less than 4 weeks before the date of the Inquiry.
Site
notices are sent out for display on the appeal site and any interested parties
are notified by the Local Planning Authority giving information about the date,
time and location of the Inquiry and requesting any comments to be sent to the
Inspectorate within 28 days.
PRE-INQUIRY
MEETINGS
Although
unusual, it is possible for the Inspector to hold a pre-inquiry meeting into
any Appeal in order to outline the administrative procedures for the Inquiry
and to ensure that all parties provide appropriate information in order that
the Inquiry may proceed speedily and efficiently.
An
Inspector is required to give at least two weeks notice of any pre-inquiry
meeting.
FIXING
THE APPEAL DATE
The
date for a Public Inquiry should normally be within 22 weeks of the starting
date or within 8 weeks after a pre-inquiry meeting unless extended by the
Inspectorate for particular reasons.
PROOFS
OF EVIDENCE
The
timetable for the Inquiry will indicate the period by which Proofs of Evidence
must be exchanged. This must be at least 4 weeks prior to the date of the
Inquiry.
Proofs
of Evidence that are likely to be in excess of 1500 words should be summarised.
Two
copies (appellant or local Authority) or three copies (third parties) should be
sent to the Inspectorate with a copy to any statutory party and the
Inspectorate will then forward copies of respective proofs to the parties.
At
least 4 weeks prior to the Inquiry the local authority and the appellant must
send in a 'Statement of Common Ground'. This statement is prepared jointly and
contains factual information about the proposal.
PROCEDURE
AT THE INQUIRY
On
the appointed day for the Inquiry, all parties will be required to attend at
the notified Inquiry venue in order that the Inquiry may proceed to start
promptly at
Public
Inquiries do not usually start on a Monday or before
The
Inspector will open the Inquiry by introducing himself and any assistants he
may have with him, outline the various procedural requirements and indicate how
he intends the Inquiry to proceed.
He
will advise the Inquiry that he has received and considered the Proofs and
other documents, and may have made an informal site inspection in advance of
the Inquiry. The Inspector may then enquire of both parties how long they
consider their case presentation is likely to take, in order that Inquiry
timings can be assessed. Any third parties will also be invited to provide
their details and whether or not they wish to speak.
The
Inspector will endeavour to accommodate requests for early appearances by third
parties due to personal timing or other limitations, but it is normal for third
parties to be heard towards the end of the Inquiry.
After
the preliminaries have been conducted, the Council will be invited to present
their case. Under the new rules the Council's case is
outlined first, but the appellant does have the final word.
PRESENTING
YOUR CASE - [See also APPEAL PRESENTATIONS]
This
may involve reading certain passages from the submitted statements and other
documents, but should not necessitate rehearsing the whole of the written
evidence.
Although
Proofs of Evidence and summary statements will be taken as read, it is
generally important to highlight the key issues which gave rise to the grounds
of Appeal and upon which the Appellant is relying in seeking to overturn the
Council’s decision.
The
Inspector will use his discretion to enable or require more than summary
information to be read out, particularly where complex evidence has been
submitted and it is necessary to ensure that all parties have a clear
understanding of the salient points.
The
Appellant may call any evidence in support of their Appeal. This may be
testimony from Expert Witnesses or other parties, which have a direct bearing
upon the matter at hand.
Witnesses
will be subject to cross-examination by the Local Planning Authority and the
Inspector may also ask his own questions of the witness before they complete
their evidence and the next witness is called.
The
same procedure is adopted by the Local Planning Authority who tender their own
evidence and witnesses in support of their case. Here again, the Inspector will
be entitled to ask his own questions of the Local Authority witnesses.
Third
parties, who have expressed an interest in addressing the Inquiry, will then be
invited to make their statements and will be open to cross-examination accordingly.
It is sometimes the case that third parties will be allowed to ask questions of
the main party's witnesses.
The
Local Planning Authority will then be invited to sum up their case, after which
the Appellant will be invited to do the same - effectively being given the last
word.
CLOSING
THE INQUIRY
At
this stage the Inspector will usually consider any requests for an application
for costs by either party. This will normally be done in the form of a
statement explaining why it is considered that the other party concerned has
acted in a manner which has incurred the applicant for costs to incur
additional expenditure, by virtue of unreasonable behaviour. Similarly, the
other party will be invited to defend their position and/or make any
counter-claim for costs.
The
Inspector will then make any necessary arrangements for carrying out a formal
site inspection. This may not always take place on the same day as the Inquiry
closes and may, in any event, have already taken place during the course of the
Inquiry where it has been seen expedient to do so.
Assuming
there are no other matters to be discussed, the Inspector will then formally
close the Public Inquiry and adjourn to the site inspection.
SITE
VISITS
This
inspection is only required in order for either the Local Authority or the
Appellant to be able to point out important site features and verify details
that have been referred to in the submissions. Third parties may also indicate
relevant matters that have been raised in their evidence.
NO
DISCUSSION OF THE MERITS OF AN APPEAL IS ALLOWED AT A SITE VISIT.
In
certain circumstances it may be unnecessary for the Planning Inspector to be
accompanied by either party, if the site can be seen from a public highway or
other publicly accessible land. Unaccompanied site visits will not require
formal arrangements to be made with the Council or the Appellant.
In
the interests of maintaining impartiality, the Inspector will not permit a site
visit to take place accompanied by only one party to the Appeal. If for any
reason you are unable to attend a pre-arranged site visit you should notify the
Inspectorate immediately.
FINALLY
Once
the site visit is concluded the Inspector will prepare his decision and a
formal letter will be sent to the appellant and the Council subsequently.
The
Inspectorate is always endeavouring to speed up the process and a decision may
be forthcoming very soon after the site visit. This does not mean that the
Inspector has made a snap decision. Remember he will have had your appeal
documents for some time and is charged with ensuring he has all necessary
information before deciding on the case.
The
site visit may be accompanied by a representative of either party or
unaccompanied if the site can be properly inspected from a public vantage point.
In no circumstances will the Inspector conduct a site visit accompanied by only
one party.