The Court of Appeal has recently confirmed the amendments to the Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) Order 1987 (“UCO”) and Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 2015 (“GPDO”) introduced by the Government on 1 September 2020 are lawful.
We have provided a summary of the amendments below.
2020 changes to the UCO and GPDO:
- The UCO was amended to introduce the new Use Class E, which is a wide new use class incorporating restaurants, cafes, shops, financial and professional services, offices, gyms, nurseries, and health centres. It means that owners and occupiers are no longer required to seek planning permission for a change of use within Use Class E.
- The GPDO was amended to permit the construction of one or two additional storeys above a single residential property, or above a detached or terraced commercial building (subject to conditions and limitations).
- The GPDO was amended to permit the demolition of blocks of flats and certain commercial buildings for a replacement for residential use.
The changes were immediately challenged by Rights: Community: Action (“RCA”), a campaigning group that seeks to influence the Government’s approach to climate change and environmental issues.
Decision
The RCA challenged the 2020 amendments on the basis that the Government failed to properly undertake a strategic environmental assessment before approving the planning amendments.
On 20 December 2021, the Court of Appeal rejected the RCA’s challenge by holding, on appeal, that it was lawful for the Government to introduce the revised planning regime in 2020.
Moving forward
This ruling provides much-needed certainty to owners, occupiers, and legal practitioners as a previous sense of caution in the industry in respect of embracing the 2020 amendments affected their use, as the awareness of the RCA’s appeals grew.
Now, the 2020 amendments can be welcomed with open arms as we can breathe a sigh of relief.
If you are an owner or occupier and wish to take advantage of the wider Use Class E or the increased development rights under the GPDO, we recommend you take advice from a legal professional.
How we can help
If you require any advice in relation to the subjects discussed in this article, please do not hesitate to contact a member of our expert Commercial Property team in Derby, Leicester or Nottingham on 0800 024 1976 or via our online enquiry form.
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