Powers of the planning departments in England and Wales
It is clear that the powers granted to planning departments in England and Wales is in relation to what is referred in law as “development”. It is clear what it is referred in law as Development, and this is defined in:
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1990/8/section/55?view=plain
in particular:
(2)The following operations or uses of land shall not be taken for the purposes of this Act to involve development of the land—
(a)the carrying out for the maintenance, improvement or other alteration of any building of works which—
(i)affect only the interior of the building, or
(ii)do not materially affect the external appearance of the building,
and are not works for making good war damage or works begun after 5th December 1968 for the alteration of a building by providing additional space in it underground;
As seen above, anything that affects the interior of any building is not considered a “development” in planning. There are some exceptions, and these are:
Buildings declared Listed Grade 1 or 2. This is because the legislation clearly expresses this exception in legislation. In any case where an exception is not clearly expressed in legislation, the planning department has no jurisdiction in connection with any amenities inside any building.
In other words, unless legislation does not express it explicitly the planning department in England and Wales have no jurisdiction on the layout, content , fittings (like kitchens and bathrooms which can be fitted freely without planning permission).
Class E Permitted development rights
The relevant legislation is below:
It is important to emphasise that class E does not provide powers to impose any say on the internal layout and utilities of the outbuilding. It specifies only the permitted use of the outbuilding, which can only be enforced using the standard procedures for use of buildings. As per Class E permitted development rights, any “incidental” use of the outbuilding is allowed. Therefore, if a bathroom or kitchen with cooking facility or any other amenities are installed inside the outbuilding, they can be still used within the scope of class E PD rights as incidental to the use of the dwellinghouse. The legislation does not grant any special powers to the planning department to enforce the removal of any facilities onside the outbuilding. In general as we have seen above the planning legislation is very clear as to the lack of power of the planning department in connection with the fixtures, utilities and internal layout of any buildings of any type in England and Wales.
Therefore, it seems clear that there are no planning powers to dictate what can be installed in the outbuilding and what cannot, because by law internal contents of a building is not considered “development”. If it is not considered “development” it does not require planning permission.
What is very clear is that the following Incidental/Ancillary uses are allowed:
1 As Gym (Gyms have fully working bathrooms) including saunas to be used nyu the residents of the dwellinghouse.
2 Office (which can include fully working kitchen). Fully fitted kitchens are used in several offices throughout England and Wales, therefore a kitchen in an outbuilding can be used for the same purposes incidental to the main dwelling house.
3 Washing clothes/ Laundry to be used by the residents of the dwellinghouse.
4 Cooking podcast area, and extra cooking facility for the residents of the dwellinghouse. (full working kitchen)
5 Relaxation area, watching movies (TV required), to be used by the residents of the dwellinghouse.
6 Play area to be used by the residents of the dwellinghouse
7 Sauna room (Full working bathroom required) to be used by the residents of the dwellinghouse.
8 Residents Worship facility (in Churches there are fully working Kitchens and bathrooms and many examples as evidence can be brought forward)
9 Any kitchen and full bathroom can be used incidentally by the residents of the main dwelling when required.
Several other uses can be identified as incidental and ancillary of Kitchens and Bathrooms in outbuildings constructed using Class E permitted development rights. Therefore, both fully fitted kitchens and fully working bathrooms can be placed in outbuildings and they are allowed to be used within the remit of class E permitted development rights. Fully functioning kitchens and bathrooms do not cause a breach of planning control because they are present in the outbuildings. Their presence in the outbuilding not only is not considered “development ” by the current legislation, but as we have just seen they have several clear functions in the outbuilding for their allowable incidental uses as permitted by Class E Permitted development legislation. Even in those cases of possible identified breaches of planning control the most common as self-contained use, then the planning department can only issue an enforcement notice to stop the use and self-contained but cannot order that the kitchen and bathrooms are removed because kitchens and bathrooms can still be used for purposes incidental to the main dwelling house as identified above. Therefore, their removal is an abuse as they deprive lawful rights of use to the householder under Class E PD rights. The council cannot deprive the householder of the rights of use of the outbuilding as per class E by ordering the removal of any kitchen or /and bathroom that can still be used within the scope of class E permitted development rights as incidental use to the main dwellinghouse. This holds true especially when the content of the outbuilding is not defined as “development” by the applicable legislation as seen above.
Therefore, in case the council orders the removal of internal fittings inside an outbuilding constructed using Class E in any case it is not an allowable enforcement action because the council does not have any powers in connection to the internal layout and fittings and amenities (including kitchens and bathrooms) as seen in the legislation here https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1990/8/section/55?view=plain . Doing so , as we have just seen, impede the full enjoyment of allowable amenities (kitchen and Bathroom) for the legitimate uses specified in class E permitted Development rights.
Concept of Intended use in UK Law
The concept of intended use in law is important to be mentioned here.Let’s take a knife for example. A knife can have different intended uses: it could be used for surgical procedures, for Cooking Purposes or even to commit violent lethal crimes. It is not the knife that determines its use, it is the user that does determine its use. This is the reason for the law to allow the standard procedure to ascertain existing uses thought the type of formal request you already issued last year to us in connection with the use of the dwellinghouse. The appraisal of the contents of a building does not provide proof of its use and from a planning perspective as seen above any contents or fittings of a building does not constitute “Development”.
Therefore, the actual use of a property like in this case has to be identified, proven to be in breach of the planning law in order to issue a valid enforcement notice. However, because the contents and amenities of the building (Including kitchens and bathrooms) do not constitute “development” from a planning standpoint they are permitted to be in the outbuilding especially because they have clear functions within the scope of uses allowed in Class E permitted development rights as seen above.
,The issuance of an enforcement notice based on the the amenities and layout of the building and not the use of the outbuilding which conforms with the uses allowed by class E permitted development rights to which we will of course issue an appeal and very likely to have it withdrawn since there are not currently legal basis for such an enforcement since the actual use is conforming to class E PD rights. Remember, it is not the internal layout and amenities that determine the use of the property.
Based on all the above and below (previous email) unless you can provide reference to the relevant legislation (point 1,2 and 3 above) you are attempting to impose control on internal layout and/or fittings (or you intend to enforce your interpretation of guidance notes in the court of law) we suggest instead you to procede using the correct the statutory tools provided by the law in connection with enforcements of use of buildings (as you have used last year with us). This seems a lawful, appropriate and correct approach to us. This approach , as far a we are aware is the only legal tool provided to planning authorities to control the use of buildings in England and Wales. Also this approach seems to be lawful and appropriate to us.
The USE shall not make the outbuilding as self-contained.
It not the presence of a fully funnctionsnning Kithen and abthroom that makes an outbuilding self contined it is thee use of it that does.
The guidance
Page 41 of the guidance when referreing as self contained it makes implied reference to the use as Self contained not the amennities of the outbuildings (including kitchen and abtherooms) becauxe by vrtue of https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1990/8/section/55?view=plain the amenities, layout anf fittings are not classed as development. Thereofre the outbuilding can still benefit form the incudental use even wioth kitchens and barthooms installed in it.
Potential prosecutions based on internal amenities of an outbuilding.
In the unlikley case any council would try to prosecute based on an enforcement notice where internal fittings of an outbuilding is ordered to be removed this would be defended and defeated easily pointing out that that according to present legislation any content of a building (excluding exeptions to wich a Class E PD. Remeber that in prosecution cases are very diffferent from appeals to enforcement notices. Appeals to enforcement notices can be lost even ifg the enforcement notices are not lawful based on failure to build the appeal on the correct grounds.