Have planning laws changed or are planning officers being harsher now?

[new2cm]

My friend in a completely different part of the country (hence different planning authority), is attempting to register as a childminder.

She is experiencing hassles that I have not encountered. Planning permission being one of them.

A planning officer said to me that,"as you are looking after a maximum of 6 children (including your own) at any one time, and you still live in the house, and you have not made any alterations to the house, and there are no problems relating to parking and neighbours, you won't need planning permission" and refered me to PPG4.

However, my friend has had a completely different experience. She has been told to apply for planning permission regardless to the number of children minded or the circumstances. Surely that's wrong?

Surely PPG4 is a national guideline. Can planning officers really ignore it?

There has been guidance sent out some time ago to all planning authorities saying that planning permission is not required for childminders caring for up to 6 children. I would check the NCMA website as I think there might be something on there, if not get your firend to contact them & they would confirm this for her I am sure. She should have a development worker (or similar) who could confirm that for her as well.

Can I ask, is there something online re this PPG4 - I'm interested in reading it.

NCMA page

PPG4, p 32 mentions CMing

Our LA has a blanket policy allowing CMing without permission needing to be sought

PPG4 has been superseeded by PPS4 which doesn't include any reference to childminding.

This document however includes the following paragraph:

You do not necessarily need planning permission to work from home. The key test is whether the overall character of the dwelling will change as a result of the business. If the answer to any of the following questions is ?yes?, then permission will probably be needed:

• Will your home no longer be used mainly as a private residence?
• Will your business result in a marked rise in traffic or people calling?
• Will your business involve any activities unusual in a residential area?
• Will your business disturb your neighbours at unreasonable hours or create other forms of nuisance such as noise or smells?

Now you may think that childminding results in more people calling dropping off children, but this is not what they have in mind here - they are talking about a shop or similar.

Also, while we can at "other forms of nuisance such as noise or smells", again they are thinking of a whole order of magnitude different here - industrial processes rather than the normal domestic noise of children at play etc.

The NCMA really ought to grow a pair and tell you you don't need planning permission.

Thank you so much for your replies.

I love this forum - very useful!

I am probably being paranoid now but I think the planner concerned must have read this thread (I know I am being paranoid!) because the planning officer has written back to my friend saying that he is simply quoting the borough's local plan, a copy of which he had attached.

I will be writing to the NCMA with the attachment of the local plan. I think this is so wrong.

I'm in Wales so deal with CSSIW instead of Ofsted. The rules here are that you have to send a letter informing the planners that you intend to CM from your home and how many children you will be registered for. You don't necessarily need to have a reply from them but you have to allow (I think) 6 weeks from the date of the letter to see if they have any objections. IIRC, there is also a questionnaire that has to be filled out and sent with the letter to do with how much increased traffic etc the CM business will cause.

Ah, the good stuff is over on the Valuation Office Agency web site - looks like an exciting place .

Note also this agreement between Ofsted and . I take back what I said about the NCMA on this occasion, it seems like Ofsted is the culprit here.

I see that the agreement was made in 2005, wasn't this about the time that Ofsted decided that it would be a good idea to interfere with private non-commercial childcare arrangements? They were quite rightly slapped down on that one, and should be for interfering on planning matters too IMHO.

If you are having problems with a local planning authority or Ofsted (or the equivalent national authority) on this, free assistance may be provided by Planning Aid.