Enforcement action taken after planning breach in South Downs National Park

Enforcement action taken after planning breach in South Downs National Park

May 17, 2023

An alpaca farmer has been ordered to remove his mobile home from a sensitive site in the South Downs National Park after a protracted legal battle with East Hampshire’s Planning Enforcement team.

Mr and Mrs Giles had planned to use land at Lone Barn Farm, Church Lane, in Greatham, to run a business importing and breeding alpacas.

In 2021 they appealed against a ruling from East Hampshire District Council – acting on behalf of the National Park Authority – to remove the mobile home they had installed on the land and the associated infrastructure they had built there without permission.

The matter was settled by the Planning Inspectorate on 4 April, which sided with the Authority. The couple now has eight months to remove their mobile home, as well as a septic tank, a stable, the concrete hard-standing it rests on and any other domestic structures.

The legal arguments rested on whether the business had a sound financial plan behind it and whether it was necessary for the couple to live on site all year round.

The Planning Inspectorate ruled that neither of these questions were satisfactorily answered by the appellants. The land must now be returned to its former use as an agricultural site.

This is a significant case which demonstrates how determined we are to see these cases through to the end.”

Mike Hughes, Major Planning Projects and Performance Manager for the National Park, said: “The National Park was designated for the entire nation for its incredible landscape, biodiversity and cultural heritage and developing without planning consent is a serious breach. Developers need to know that if they breach national planning regulations we have the resources to take decisive action.”