Striped House In Conservation Area Does Not Breach Planning Laws

The court has upheld a property owner's judicial review challenge of an order that required her to paint her striped townhouse white, on the basis that the local planning authority (LPA) did not use the correct route to control the appearance of the property.

The decision reminds LPAs of the circumstances in which it is appropriate to serve a section 215 notice. It also highlights the other options available to local planning authorities who want to restrict the rights of property owners.

Section 215 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990

Section 215 enables a local planning authority (LPA) to serve a notice if it appears to it that the amenity of the area is adversely affected by the condition of the land. The LPA can specify the action that must be taken to remedy the situation.

In 2015, the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC) issued a notice under section 215 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, requiring Zipporah Lisle-Mainwaring to repaint her red and white striped townhouse with white paint. Ms Lisle-Mainwaring appealed to the magistrates' court against the section 215 notice. This failed, and the matter was taken to the Crown Court.

The Crown Court decided that, although painting the front of the building with red and white stripes was a lawful development that did not require planning permission, this did not preclude a section 215 notice from being served. The court stated that the painting of the front of the house in red and white stripes did have an adverse effect on amenity, and harmed the uniformity of the buildings on the street and in the conservation area. Therefore, the use of a section 215 notice to remedy this was appropriate.

Why does exterior painting not require planning permission?

The painting of the exterior of any building is permitted under permitted development rights (PDR). PDR effectively grant planning permission without the need to apply for it. In many cases, where a property is located in a conservation area, additional controls are imposed on the use of PDR. This is not so in the case of exterior painting.

Ms Lisle-Mainwaring's argued in the Crown Court that, had RBKC wanted to restrict the colour of paint used on the exterior of buildings, this...