Help please! planning consent required for change of use?

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lostmymarbles

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Head is hurting have been trying to find out if planning consent is required to change a small holding into private equestrian use.
Thought I had evetually found something on line, but can't get the docuement to open. Have thought about calling the relevant planning authority but they apparently now charge for pre planning information.
I know we would need to apply for a school but are concerned about overall change and putting internal stables in the barns that are already there.
As we are only in the first stages of looking at properties we are trying not to incur any expense so any help and advice would be gratefully received
 
Change of use usually requires planning permission. But it will pay to check with the council in your area (some seem to interpret the rules slightly differently) or perhaps post the it on here so that if anyone else sees it who's already gone through the process I that area can advise.
 
I don't think you do need permission tbh, but I stand to be corrected - or rather I have never known anyone apply for it in similar circumstances, though I realise this does not necessarily mean you don't need it :)
 
Change of use from agriculture to equestrian technically requires planning consent but it is unlikely to be refused in these days of diversification - will just cost you a fee. Phone call might not be evidence if it goes pear shaped but will give you an idea.
Most such changes have happened under the radar and once it has been in place for a period (6 years?? someone might correct me) you no longer need it. Depends on whether your neighbours are overly vigilant TBH - I had a nosy neighbour but as there had been a horse or two on mine before I bought it no-one registered that it had changed.
You can always apply restrospectively if someone dobs you in :)
 
JillA said:
Change of use from agriculture to equestrian technically requires planning consent but it is unlikely to be refused in these days of diversification - will just cost you a fee. Phone call might not be evidence if it goes pear shaped but will give you an idea.
Most such changes have happened under the radar and once it has been in place for a period (6 years?? someone might correct me) you no longer need it. Depends on whether your neighbours are overly vigilant TBH - I had a nosy neighbour but as there had been a horse or two on mine before I bought it no-one registered that it had changed.
You can always apply restrospectively if someone dobs you in :)
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^^ we had to apply for change of use from a small holding to Equestrian and had to justify it against some very strong objections. We have permission as a private yard and are forbidden to have liveries or rent out our school which isnt a problem for us.
 
Thanks everyone, looks like I will have to bite the bullet and call the planning department before we go any further, hope they don't want to charge me too much!
 
You will require planning consent for change of use from agricultural to equestrian.
Does it have an agricultural tie? You need to check this out as this would make it very much more difficult.
 
We have applied for change of use from agricultural to equestrian for our 8 acre field. No objections raised, and no reason for it not to go straight through as far as we are aware. The only thing they asked about was how many visitors in cars would be there on a daily basis
 
Darkly_Dreaming_Dex said:
^^ we had to apply for change of use from a small holding to Equestrian and had to justify it against some very strong objections. We have permission as a private yard and are forbidden to have liveries or rent out our school which isnt a problem for us.
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We have the restriction that nobody who is not related to me can use my school. So technically my Dad can (who has never sat on a horse) but until we were married, my then fiance could not.
 
case895 said:
We have the restriction that nobody who is not related to me can use my school. So technically my Dad can (who has never sat on a horse) but until we were married, my then fiance could not.
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Just a question.. how are they allowed to enforce that? If you let your friend use your arena on non-profit basis or your neighbour who doesn't have an arena then surely that is fine.. I am just slightly confused as to how they are allowed to enforce that?
 
Tern said:
Just a question.. how are they allowed to enforce that? If you let your friend use your arena on non-profit basis or your neighbour who doesn't have an arena then surely that is fine.. I am just slightly confused as to how they are allowed to enforce that?
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Planning only act if somebody makes a complaint. Were my weird neighbours to complain, I would get a letter from planning telling me I was a naughty boy. I might respond to such a letter, or I might not. They then might or might not take it further.
 
I would make sure I had a holding number and get some sheep. They cross graze well with horses, you can spin the wool and they are agricultural.
 
Never even occurred to me, but then horses were kept (and used) on our smallholding until recently - it already had a "stable" (not one I would keep a horse of mine in though!). Since mine is a HW cob I could always claim I use him to work the fields! After the old boy who owned it retired the fields were rented to a neighbour who (amongst the cows and sheep) kept his donkey and Connemara broodmares on it.
 
JillA said:
Change of use from agriculture to equestrian technically requires planning consent but it is unlikely to be refused in these days of diversification - will just cost you a fee. Phone call might not be evidence if it goes pear shaped but will give you an idea.
Most such changes have happened under the radar and once it has been in place for a period (6 years?? someone might correct me) you no longer need it. Depends on whether your neighbours are overly vigilant TBH - I had a nosy neighbour but as there had been a horse or two on mine before I bought it no-one registered that it had changed.
You can always apply restrospectively if someone dobs you in :)
Click to expand...

Think it's 10 years, we had a very old wooden conservatory attached to our house which started to fall down, mum wanted to build a new one and didn't ask for
PP (needed due to being listed building) and it's been up 10 years this year, and I remember her mentioning something to do with not having to worry cos it's finally hit the 10 year mark.
 
I think that as long as you're not planning to "run a business" from the small holding, I doubt you'd have any problems. You need to stress that it is for your private use only....as we did when we applied for pp for our manege. Good luck!
 
laura_nash said:
Never even occurred to me, but then horses were kept (and used) on our smallholding until recently - it already had a "stable" (not one I would keep a horse of mine in though!). Since mine is a HW cob I could always claim I use him to work the fields! After the old boy who owned it retired the fields were rented to a neighbour who (amongst the cows and sheep) kept his donkey and Connemara broodmares on it.
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I think the laws in Ireland are different as horses are classified as agricultural animals over there, or they were at one time, over here they fall into no category, unless they are actually used for working the land they are not agricultural, they are not pets in reality so it can prove difficult to get planning for change of use, stables and arenas without some restrictions put in place limiting the use.

Grazing is generally no problem, taking hay or haylage, it is when you want to put a few jumps in the field or build a stable that planning can prove difficult even if you have a change of use to equestrian it is not certain you will be allowed to build on it.
 
The Town & Country Planning Act (Years and Revisions) is interpreted differently by each local authority - a bit like religious folk and their scriptures - some seem to let anything go, whereas others are fundamentallists! In my experience, you only have to mention the word "horse" or anything to do with them to find out which sort you are dealing with. "Horseyculture" is often frowned upon even in rural areas - other places let you build a stable that looks remarkably like a desireable bungalow so long as there's a pony in it when the inspector calls!

Contraventions - that's anything the Planners don't like - have to be reported within three years of the change for any action against it to be taken but some council's don't know that - or willfully ignore it and will bring down the full force of the law even if they lose the case later on. If anyone complains about anything - and I do mean ANYthing - the council sends a man to investigate with almost draconian powers - so I'd advise against trying to do the change on the quiet.

Do pop into your local council and see someone - get their name and email - confirm what they've told you.
 
Then what would happen if, instead of horsey stuff, you had a swimming pool, or tennis court. I have never heard of restrictions on these. Do planners tell people only family can come for a swim, or stop a friend coming for a game of tennis ?
case895 said:
We have the restriction that nobody who is not related to me can use my school. So technically my Dad can (who has never sat on a horse) but until we were married, my then fiance could not.
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As far as planning laws are concerned there are several types of horse.
Horses used for breeding
Horses used for the production of meat
Horses used for working on a farm
Horses that only eat the grass in the field but are not given any additional feed at all
Horses used for recreational purposes and these are the ones that require change of use from agricultural to equestrian.
Regarding tennis courts and swimming pools restrictions can be applied to these. Local authorities are especially sensitive to the lighting of tennis courts (similar to equestrian arenas).
 
So much depends on your local council some dont bother with change of use but some are money grabbing zealots and act outside government guidelines which very clearly state that the grazing would not need a change of use Nor do any buildings that are within the curteledge of the house and used for private purposes
 
be positive said:
I think the laws in Ireland are different as horses are classified as agricultural animals over there, or they were at one time
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Thanks, that's reassuring. I don't forsee any problems since we have good relationships with all our neighbours, but several are elderly so things could change in the future.

be positive said:
it is when you want to put a few jumps in the field or build a stable that planning can prove difficult
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Just down the road a family has show jumps (scarily high ones) permanently set up in the garden of a derelict house, somehow I doubt they have planning permission for change of use (!) so I guess no-one is very strict around here.
 
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