A FUMING developer has been ordered to tear down their shed in a forest plot after losing a planning battle.
Colin Parsons, 67, built a shed on a plot of land in Adisham Woods, on the outskirts of Canterbury in Kent.
But he now stands to lose a significant sum after a battle with Canterbury City Council ended in defeat.
The row centred on planning permission – which Mr Parsons believes he had.
A CCC document dated February 2019 shows he was told he did not need prior approval to erect a “proposed agricultural building” under permitted development rules.
And after a complaint in October 2020, planning officers concluded in May 2021 that the buildings were as per the plans once they were built.
But the council later said planning rules at the site were breached and issued an enforcement notice in 2022.
And, after a lengthy appeals process which went all the way to the High Court, Colin has now been told he has until November to pull the buildings down – or he could face criminal charges.
Colin has railed against the decision and says all he and his family ever wanted to do was save the woodlands.
He said: “We spent thousands of pounds on the forestry workshops and then three and a half years later the council put an enforcement on us after being told we were living there.
Most read in Money
“We have never lived there, there is no toilet, there are no windows, it is simply to keep the machinery and make a cup of tea.
“It’s not illegal to build on woodland. Our three buildings that we put permission in for, we met all the criteria when we built them, but we’ve had one campaigner in the village who’s had it in for us and they’ve sided with them.
“Canterbury council has been terrible throughout the whole ordeal. It’s devastated us as a family and our mental health because we’ve done our best for the environment, and the way we’ve been treated is disgusting.”
The Parsons have been ordered to tear down the buildings by November 2025 in order to comply with the decision.
They feel that their work to save the woods – with fencing, replanting and routing out the anti-social behaviour – has been undervalued by the council and residents.
Colin – who runs a specialist road works company – said: “They think we want to destroy the woods – it couldn’t be further from the truth. We have undertaken significant replanting to save Adisham Woods.
“Our work has protected the wildlife – we have saved buzzards, badgers and foxes here. We have deer which visit, because we’ve left brambles out for them.”
He said: “It’s crazy – we try to talk to people and they don’t want to hear it. You can’t even paint your door in the village because people are on to you.
“They all moaned about the fences, but we made runs for badgers underneath the fences and spaces for foxes too.
“I’ve had to spend an extra £60,000 on legal fees.
“But it’s not the money, it’s the principle of it. It hurts me because the buildings were built with pride and we are proud to be looking after the woods.
“We’re doing it sustainably, it’s hard work but it’s enjoyable.
“If we go and someone else buys it – it could be the end of the woods.”
Although Colin has had offers to buy his plots, he wants to look after the area and continue to manage it sustainably.
We’ve been told to tear down our £20,000 garden shed by council but we’ll NEVER let them win – we’ve got a clever plan
By Jonathan Rose
A FURIOUS couple say they will refuse to tear down a £20,000 summer house after their bid to keep it was rejected by councillors.
Catherine Curran and her partner Martin Keyes installed the building in their garden nearly four years ago.
But last year they were left stunned when they discovered that council planners had refused retrospective planning for their two metre outbuilding.
The couple appealed against the decision but following a visit to the site councillors on the authority’s Local Review Body unanimously backed the original verdict.
The door is now open for Inverclyde Council to take enforcement action to have the building removed, if the local authority deems such action necessary.
The couple believe they still may be able to save their garden shed by moving it using a crane.
A spokesperson for Canterbury city council said: “In 2019 the owners of several sections of the woodland applied to the council for prior approval to locate buildings, which they said were required for forestry management purposes.
“Buildings were built at the site, but they were not built in accordance with the prior approvals granted by the council.
“A planning enforcement notice was served against the unlawful buildings in 2022.
“The owner exercised their right of appeal against the notices. The appeal was heard by a government Planning Inspector last year. The inspector looked into the case in depth and concluded that the buildings were in fact unlawful and accordingly upheld the planning enforcement notices.
“In their report, the inspector said ‘…evidence shows it is more likely than not that the developments were not carried out in accordance with the details submitted with the prior approval applications’.
“Regarding the impact of the development, the inspector concluded that ‘…overall, the buildings harm the character and appearance of the area and the local landscape character of the Area of High Landscape Value individually’ and said ‘…the buildings are likely to have resulted in the loss or deterioration of irreplaceable habitat’.
“And the inspector said ‘…I remain unconvinced that appropriate management of the woodland in each case, or the potential benefits set out by the appellants, depend on any of the buildings’.
“The compliance period for the removal of the buildings is later this year. We would anticipate that the owners will remove the buildings by that date as they will be aware that non-compliance with an enforcement notice is a criminal offence.
“There is no evidence that the owners have been living in the buildings.
Read More on The Sun
“The owners are, of course, free to the manage the woodland as they wish and to continue to prevent badger baiting, drugs and anti-social behaviour on their land.
“We are proud of the fact we have stuck up for local residents and protected ancient woodland, and are pleased our stance was backed by the planning inspector.”
I’m a home expert – six little-known rules that could land you in court for making a change to your home
Ali Uddin, who works at planning consultant Planning Pros, said most people run into difficulty with making changes to their homes because of one general mistake: not understanding the current limits of these rules.
If you’re careful, he explained, it is possible to make quite a lot of changes without the need to get planning permission.
But falling foul of the rules could land you in hot water.
“I’ve heard cases where people have spent £60,000 on work thinking it falls under permitted development rights and actually it needs planning permission,” Ali said.
Even if it doesn’t get that far, you could be made to apply to planning permission retrospectively, or in extreme cases, made to reverse any changes you have made.
If in doubt, you can apply for a Lawful Development Certificate (LDC) before any work starts.
It is not compulsory to have an LDC but there may be times when you need one to confirm that the use, operation or activity named in it is lawful for planning purposes.
“Just getting that certificate from the outset could save you a lot of bother,” Ali said.
You can also check any plans with your local council, which you can find here.
And the government has lots of general planning information on its website.
It is always better to check before you start any work.
