East Cambs DC – working together to improve our quality of life/banging your head against a brick wall!
Light and airy with a pleasant view
It has been a busy weekend, I saw lots of lovely brides and even more fabulous bridesmaids, and the week is set to be even busier. It has been a welcome relief to work, as last week was a very stressful one for my family, and unfortunately things don’t look like they will be getting any easier for them.
Once on the East Cambs Council Website there was the wonderful logo ‘Cambridgeshire Together, working together to improve our quality of life’. On this occasion I have to strongly disagree with their claims, or assume that this catchy strapline has expired. The Planning Department are not improving the life of my parents, if anything the action or inaction of the planner has taken a considerable toll on the health of Ely DC taxpayers, my parents. When my parents took my children out for lunch last Saturday to celebrate my sons 11th birthday, they left behind them a nice sunny, airy home, with a nice view, as above. When they returned home later on that afternoon, my mother commented on how dark the house was for so early in the afternoon. When she walked up the stairs, she saw the reason for the ‘black out’. An overbearing brick wall has been built just a few feet from the window. Now, I am not saying this came out of the blue, obviously the building work has been happening over a few weeks on the neighbouring property. (My mum is so lovely she has even made the builders tea). What was a shock was how large and high the wall was and how close to the house it was built, and obviously how much light it has taken away from her home, not to mention the view. It came as a complete shock in how the building work differed from the original plans. Now, on the view issue I am the first to admit, it is not as though they had an uninterrupted view of rolling hills and mountains, but a pleasant view over gardens, and rooftops into the orchard behind was nice enough. They did however enjoy a light and airy hall, landing and staircase and w.c, with the benefit of not having to turn on the lights every time they went upstairs or into the hallway. The building of the wall is not yet complete and the roof has to go on also.
Nice View
So, shocked at what had happened whilst they were out, off my parents went to the neighbours house, to discuss how the extension had got so big, from the original plans that they were shown when neighbour told them of his planned home improvements. The neighbour was very shocked that they were unaware of the changes that had been made. He knew they had no objection to the first plans. He told them of how the original plans for a small ensuite had been rejected by the local Planning Officer, and so were withdrawn. The council wrote to my parents and the other neighbours informing them of the withdrawal. They, nor the other neighbours heard anything further from the council. However, the Planning Officer said she would accept new plans if the en-suite were much bigger, with a larger wall, being built closer to the neighbouring property, and showed the architect what was acceptable to her. She told them of the larger dimensions that she would accept, and it is my understanding that in a letter to the householder said she would consult / visit with the neighbours that would be effected. That did not happen. The building work started, and the full impact of this building is now obvious to all.
My parents immediately spoke to the other neighbours to see if they knew about the change in plans. Non did, the last they all heard was from the council saying the plans were withdrawn. My parents contacted the council, to find out why they were not told of the planned changes. The councils answer when it came, was quite astonishing. I won’t go into the full details of it, because it is the usual ‘get of out jail free’ jargon that officials with clip boards use, but the gist of it is – ‘tough – prove it! ‘.
The onus is on my parents and the other residents to prove they were not contacted, not on East Cambs to prove they were. My first thoughts were that this could be a clerical error. But East Cambs District Council apparently do not acknowledge the existence of clerical errors. (This is brilliant news, as if they don’t have clerical errors it appears that a member of their team is psychic, as she has the ability to reply to letters that are written months in the future. In one instance she replies in February 2008 to a letter that doesn’t get written until December 2008 – that is a seriously good talent to have.) Letters went out to all the neighbours informing them of the new plans, and a notice was pinned to the telegraph pole outside the householders house for a period of 20 days in February 2008. The fact that none of the residents say they got a letter, or ever saw the notice (the householder building the extension, himself says he never saw the notice either) does not matter. The letters were sent out. The fact that none were delivered doesn’t raise any concern. They were sent. The road in question has only about 12 houses in it, 8 near enough to worry about the extension, so it hasn’t been a hard job for my Father to ask the neighbours if they received notification. No one spoken to had, some went as far as to say if they had they would have objected to such overbearing work being carried out so close to the next house, as it spoils the look of the area. All have said they find it unbelievable that such plans were passed, and at the insistence of the Planning Officer, and without consultation to any of them. (I have to point out that the planning department did say that the householder in question could have said no to the Planning Officer and not built an extension at all.) But it is a a generally known that when you want building work done, you ask for more than you require, in the certain knowledge that you will get half, I haven’t previously heard of a council planner saying ‘Your ensuite is far to small, have a much bigger one, make it into a full sized family bathroom” But on this occasion it appears that the bigger the better. So if you are thinking of putting in planning permission for a large garden pond, the council could well insist you build a swimming pool. This is going to benefit everyone.
The council have rightly pointed out that no-one in our country is entitled to a view or natural light from a hall way or landing or bathroom window, no matter how long you have enjoyed the privilege of such in the past. So the extension is not breaking any planning laws. However, a real answer as to why a smaller extension that the householder had requested, which would not have had such a devastating impact on the neighbours was rejected, and a much larger one insisted by the Planning Officer is not forthcoming in a manner that us mere mortal could understand. The answer as to why no-one was consulted on the changes is, that they were by letter, but as to why the letters were not received, well we have to prove that they were not received rather than the council has to prove that they were. It seems that in this instance, the letters sent from the council are like the spawning salmon that battle their way home to their birthplace, lots start the journey, but hardly any actually get there. The council feels that as everyone got the first two letters, there is no reason to believe that subsequent letters were not received, and there is no way that either party can prove the point. 8 honest and upstanding residents all saying that the letters weren’t received is not proof enough.
It doesn’t bother me about the planned extension or the people who own the house. My parents say the neighbours are a lovely couple, who would never have deliberately asked for plans to be passed knowing that it would have such a devastating effect on them. What bothers me greatly, is that I know what a stickler for detail councils are, and if an ordinary citizen fails to notify the local authority, especially the Planning Department, woe betide him. But they are not so rigorous with their own attention to detail. Everyone who has seen the building, and there have been many, has been shocked out how overbearing it is, even the builder, but he was advised by the council in writing that consultation with the neighbours and a visit would take place before planning permission was granted. The consultation happened in the form of a letter that not one of the residents spoken to received, and the visit that took place was in the form of the planning officer driving past the house. It is down to the discretion of the Planning Officer. This is good enough for East Cambs District Council, if it is not good enough for my parents or the other residents, then they suggest taking the complaint to the Ombudsman, they don’t suggest stage 2 of the complaints procedure. Having checked out the effectiveness of this course of action, I understand that it would take many years, thousands of pounds in legal fees, and as I can only find evidence of 2 people have ever been successful, no doubt fruitless, the house built in the 70′s could well be a listed building by then. But on the positive side, if a ‘drive by’ is classed as a visit, then all I have to do in future is drive past both Grandparents homes, tell the kids too look out the window as we pass, and that constitutes a visit. I can now say I have visited my Aunt in North Wales, as we did drive past the motorway exit recently, that would have taken us to her house. It also releases me from the guilt of the annual Christmas Card debacle. I write the cards, full of good wishes and love, I address them, and occasionally I have managed to get stamps on them, but only a minority make it to the post box. Shameful I know, but now when my mum asks if I have sent a card to Aunty Flo and Uncle Bob, all I have to do is say ’can they prove I didn’t?’ Sorted.
So thank you to the Planning Department of East Cambs District Council, your policy of making the taxpayers prove they have not been contacted or consulted is inspiring, and relying on your own discretion, rather than professional courtesy ensures your back is covered. It causes maximum stress and upset, and the stress caused by your ‘brick wall’ approach on more than one level, shows that your strap line ‘working together to improve our quality of life’ is really outdated.
Have a great day everyone x