Planning & Design Practice are pleased to have secured a Lawful Development Certificate, alongside a Section 73 application, for Morefruita Farm.
Morefruita Farm is a farm shop located in Clowne, Worksop. The site has been active since the 1960s, when it was run as a “pick your own” farm and nursery.
This business was in operation until 2005, when the site gained permission to be run as a garden centre/nursery. The site has continued to be in this use since then, with 6 acres of land behind the site solely devoted to growing fruit and vegetables to sell in the garden centre/nursery. The business also sells other local produce and plants, as well as gardening paraphernalia and local products such as baked goods, cards, and soft goods.
The applicants were approached by the Council last year, informing them that they were unknowingly in breach of one of the planning conditions on the site. Due to when the permission was granted, the planning conditions for the site were more restrictive than what they can be now.
To rectify the breach, we, on the applicant’s behalf, applied for a Lawful Development Certificate and a Section 73 application to vary the breached condition.
The Lawful Development Certificate allowed for certainty that the barn that the applicant’s were trading out of, which replaced a greenhouse that previously stood on the same footprint, was lawful. Planning Legislation states that a building is ‘lawful’ if, on the balance of probability, it has been erected for a period of at least 4 years. The steps for this involves gathering evidence to show that the building has been standing, which could include photographs, aerial views, and other documents. In this case, the building was erected in 2012 and therefore was granted the Lawful Development Certificate.
The Section 73 application allowed for the restrictive condition that the applicants were unknowingly in breach of, to be varied. The variation allowed for the applicants to continue to sell the goods in the garden centre/nursery lawfully. The Council agreed to an amended wording which allowed for the sale of the goods in the garden centre/nursery, without opening the site up to wider domestic sales due to the unsustainable location of the site for these goods.
Planning & Design Practice Ltd is a multi-disciplinary team of Chartered Town Planners, Architects, Architectural Assistants and Heritage Specialists. We have a wealth of experience in designing and securing planning permission for commercial projects. Gaining planning permission is a key step in almost any development. We can take a project through from inception to completion, but we also offer the flexibility to engage a client’s own architects and provide a planning service, whilst our design team can also work with clients who have engaged other town planning professionals.
Planning & Design Practice Ltd are well versed in researching and understanding local Council’s policies to ensure the best possible case if put forward for our clients.
For a free, no obligation consultation to discuss your project, please don’t hesitate to get in touch on 01332 347371.
Emily Anderson, Planner, Planning & Design Practice Ltd
