An applicant has the right to appeal to the Secretary of State against the Local Planning Authority’s determination, decision, conditions or non-determination (deemed refusal). The right to appeal can be found in Section 78 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.

If refused, in the first instance the applicant should try and speak with the local planning authority to see if amendments could be made to the application to allow it to be viewed more favourably if resubmitted. If the applicant resubmits the application within 1 year they would not have to repay the fee. An appeal should be the last resort.

If the applicant is to proceed with the appeal they need to contact the Planning Inspectorate to obtain a questionnaire form that needs to be submitted with any supporting information. An appeal must be lodged within 6 months of the date of the decision notice or, date of non-determination.

The Planning Inspectorate has precise procedures that need to be followed when conducting an appeal. The procedures can be found at the Planning Inspectorate web pages.

There are three types of appeal: written representation; public hearing; and public inquiry.

The written representation is an appropriate method if all the points can be covered within a written format. The process is cheap, quick and fair.

Public Hearings are less formal than a public inquiry, simpler and quicker. A hearing enables the parties to present their case fully and fairly in a round the table discussion led by the Inspector. There is no cross-examination within a public hearing.

Public inquiries are the most formal methods of appeal and most expensive. Inquiries allow cross-examination and usually involve barristers representing the different parties.

There are a number of electronic booklets available below on the the planning appeal process.

For Planning Appeals:

Guide to taking part in planning appeals proceeding by written representations – England

http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/uploads/pins/taking-part_planning-written.pdf

Guide to taking part in planning appeals proceeding by a hearing – England

http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/uploads/pins/taking-part_planning-hearing.pdf

Guide to taking part in planning appeals proceeding by an inquiry– England

http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/uploads/pins/taking-part_planning-inquiry.pdf

For Enforcement Appeals:

Guide to taking part in enforcement appeals proceeding by written representations – England

http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/uploads/pins/taking-part_enforcement-written.pdf

Guide to taking part in enforcement appeals proceeding by a hearing– England

http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/uploads/pins/taking-part_enforcement-hearing.pdf

Guide to taking part in enforcement appeals proceeding by an inquiry– England

http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/uploads/pins/taking-part_enforcement-inquiry.pdf

You can search for planning appeals online on the planning inspectorates website please use the following link http://www.pcs.planningportal.gov.uk/pcsportal/casesearch.asp