Cases - Richmond upon Thames London Borough Council v Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions
Record details
- Name
- Richmond upon Thames London Borough Council v Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions
- Date
- [2000]
- Citation
- 2 PLR 115
- Legislation
- Keywords
- Planning control
- Summary
-
A house was converted into 7 self-contained flats with the benefit of planning permission in 1970. In 1998 the owner applied for a certificate that the conversion back to a single dwellinghouse would be lawful. The certificate was refused.
The High Court held that as the flats were outside class C3, the conversion of the flats to a single dwellinghouse was not a change within the class. It could therefore be a material change of use if it gave rise to a planning consideration. The loss of residential property available for renting is such a consideration. The inspector had been wrong to concentrate on the impact on the building alone.