In our once peaceful neighbourhood, our lives have been profoundly disturbed by a 3.4-meter extension built by our neighbours, looming over our home, stripping away our privacy, and altering the very essence of our living space. This overbearing and intrusive construction is not just bricks and mortar; it's a constant reminder of how the current planning notification system fails sincerely affected residents.

This isn’t just our personal plight. Across our borough, countless residents face similar disruptions, blindsided by building works they were never adequately informed about. The fundamental flaw lies in the system that councils use to notify us of planned developments. Currently, the process depends heavily on yellow planning notices affixed to lampposts, often placed at significant distances from the homes that stand to be most impacted.

Across our borough, residents are being affected by building works and planning decisions they were never properly told about. Many only discover a development after it has been approved — or worse, once construction has already begun.

This is happening because the current system allows councils to rely on yellow planning notices attached to lampposts, often placed far from the homes most affected. These notices are easy to miss, easy to overlook, and offer no guarantee that the people whose lives will be impacted ever see them.

This is not fair, not transparent, and not good enough.

We are calling for urgent reform to ensure that no resident is ever blindsided by a development again.

What We Are Asking For

1. Direct Notification for All Affected Residents

Yellow lamppost notices alone are not sufficient. Every household that will be materially affected must receive direct, verifiable notification, including those who:

adjoin the site
face the site
share boundaries, access, light, or amenity impact
will experience noise, overshadowing, or loss of privacy
Notification must be trackable and auditable, not left to chance.

2. Consultation Must Not Begin Until Notification Is Confirmed

The council must not open or close a consultation period until:

all affected residents have been directly notified
proof of notification is logged
the consultation window is fair and accessible
This prevents rushed or hidden consultations.

3. Automatic Pause When Notification Fails

If even one affected household was not properly notified:

the consultation must pause
the timeline must reset
new notifications must be issued
residents must be given a fresh opportunity to respond
No development should progress when residents were excluded.

4. Zero Tolerance for Misleading or Inaccurate Application Information

Residents must not be misled by incorrect or minimised descriptions.

Applications must include:

accurate descriptions of the development (e.g., a two‑storey structure cannot be described as “one storey”)
correct drawings, elevations, and measurements
full disclosure of all external changes
no ambiguous or downplayed terminology
reference to existing legislation with defined guidelines, The High Hedges Act 2014, balancing with the rights of property owners with the feel to maintain reasonable enjoyment of their homes
If information is misleading or incomplete, the application must be invalidated and reissued.

5. Mandatory Impartiality and Conflict‑of‑Interest Safeguards

Planning officers must not handle or influence applications where impartiality could be compromised.

There must be:

mandatory declaration of conflicts
automatic reassignment of conflicted cases
a clear, auditable record of conflict checks
No one should be able to bypass procedures because of personal connections.

6. Zero Tolerance for Officer‑Provided Misinformation

Planning officers must not:

minimise the scale of a development
provide verbal assurances that contradict written plans
validate applications containing misleading information
If officer‑provided information is later found to be inaccurate, the application must be paused and reissued.

7. Clear, Accessible Information for All Residents

The council must provide:

plain‑English summaries
clear drawings showing height and massing
officer reports and assessments
guidance on how to comment or object
No more concealig key details in technical documents.

8. Protection for Vulnerable or Less‑Informed Residents

The council must ensure:

accessible formats
translation support
extended deadlines where needed
clear contact points for questions
Everyone deserves equal access to the planning process.

9. Transparent Record‑Keeping and Public Accountability

The council must maintain:

a public log of notifications sent
delivery confirmations
a clear audit trail for each application
This protects residents and prevents disputes.

10. Independent Review When Failures Occur

If a notification or consultation failure is identified:

an independent officer must review the case
the applicant must not be allowed to proceed
residents must be informed of the failure
This ensures accountability.

11. Stronger Enforcement Against Procedural Abuse

Where an applicant or agent:

misleads neighbours
withholds information
exploits loopholes
begins works without proper notice
The council must issue:

enforcement action
stop notices
penalties where appropriate
Residents deserve protection from procedural abuse.

Our Goal

To create a planning system that is:

fair
transparent
accountable
impossible to exploit
No resident should ever be left in the dark about a development that affects their home, their wellbeing, or their community.

We call on the Council to adopt these protections immediately.