In planning enforcement, the age of a building, use or other development can be legally significant. A landowner may know that an extension has existed for years, a landlord may believe a particular use began long ago, or a business may face questions about when an activity first started. But saying that something is “old” is not enough. The type of breach, the relevant date and the evidence all matter.

In This Article

• Why 25 April 2024 Matters
• The Starting Date Must Be Identified Correctly
• Historic Use Needs Evidence
• Ground (d) Can Put the Date at the Centre of an Appeal
• Do Not Assume the Ordinary Time Limit Always Ends the Matter
• Informal Council Contact Is Different From a Statutory Notice
• Keep Other Property Rules Separate
• Conclusion

England’s planning enforcement time limits changed on 25 April 2024. That means older advice referring to a simple four-year or ten-year rule can now be misleading if it is applied without checking the transitional position. Aldwych Legal supports clients across England with planning disputes, enforcement responses and strategic case preparation where historic dates and evidence are central.

Why 25 April 2024 Matters

Section 171B of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 sets the principal time limits for taking planning enforcement action. Changes introduced by the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 came into force in England on 25 April 2024.

For operational development substantially completed on or after that date, the usual enforcement period is ten years. Operational development can include building, engineering, mining or other operations carried out without the required planning permission.

The ten-year period also applies to an unauthorised change of use of a building to use as a single dwellinghouse where that change took place on or after 25 April 2024. Transitional rules preserve the former four-year period for relevant operational development substantially completed before 25 April 2024 and for a relevant change of use to a single dwellinghouse that occurred before that date. Other breaches of planning control generally remain subject to ten years.

The Starting Date Must Be Identified Correctly

Knowing the length of the relevant period is only half the exercise. The next question is when it began. For operational development, section 171B focuses on substantial completion. The important date is therefore not necessarily when work started, when materials arrived on site or when the first contractor was appointed.

Substantial completion can be fact-sensitive. Dated photographs, invoices, building records, survey material and other contemporary evidence may help establish when the works had reached that stage.

For a material change of use, the evidence may instead need to show when the new use began. Where continuity matters to a claim that enforcement is now out of time, gaps or material changes in the activity may need careful examination.

Historic Use Needs Evidence

Property owners sometimes know that a use has existed “for years” but have little documentary proof of when it began. That can become a major weakness if the council disputes the chronology.

Useful historic use planning evidence may include:

• dated tenancy agreements;
• utility bills and council records;
• business accounts or trading documents;
• dated photographs;
• invoices and receipts;
• historic mapping or aerial imagery; and
• witness statements from people with direct knowledge.

The aim is to build a coherent timeline rather than simply collect old documents. Aldwych Legal can support planning evidence and dispute preparation where records from different periods need to be organised around the statutory test.

Ground (d) Can Put the Date at the Centre of an Appeal

If an enforcement notice has already been served, a time-limit argument may be advanced under ground (d) where appropriate. Ground (d) is that, at the date the notice was issued, no enforcement action could be taken in respect of the breach constituted by the matters alleged.

This is an evidence-led argument. Current Planning Inspectorate guidance states that the appellant must support the legal grounds with clear facts and establish the case on the balance of probabilities.

The notice’s effective date still matters. If an appeal is required, the Planning Inspectorate must receive it before the enforcement notice takes effect. Continuing discussions with the council do not suspend that deadline.

Where dates, evidence and appeal grounds overlap, information about planning enforcement time-limit advice can help an owner understand how the chronology relates to the formal enforcement process.

Do Not Assume the Ordinary Time Limit Always Ends the Matter

Section 171B contains important exceptions. One is commonly called the “second bite” provision. Where earlier enforcement action, or purported enforcement action, was taken within the original time limit in respect of the same breach, further action may in certain circumstances be taken within four years of that earlier action even though the ordinary period has since expired.

Current government guidance also confirms that an enforcement warning notice issued within the relevant period can be significant for this purpose.

Deliberate concealment creates another complication. A local planning authority may, in appropriate circumstances, apply for a planning enforcement order allowing action after the ordinary section 171B period. Case law may also affect how the statutory time limits operate where a breach has been deliberately concealed.

Aldwych Legal can support evidence-led case preparation where a council relies on previous enforcement steps or alleges concealment, although the legal effect depends on the precise facts and documents.

Could a Lawful Development Certificate Be Relevant?

Where no enforcement notice is in force and the argument is that an existing use or development is lawful because enforcement can no longer be taken, a Lawful Development Certificate may be one route to formal confirmation.

An LDC is not retrospective planning permission. It is determined on lawfulness and evidence rather than planning merits. The applicant bears the responsibility of providing sufficient evidence to establish the case on the balance of probabilities.

A retrospective planning application answers a different question: whether permission should now be granted for development already carried out. It is not guaranteed to succeed and does not automatically stop enforcement.

Informal Council Contact Is Different From a Statutory Notice

A council may first raise an alleged historic breach through an email, letter, site visit or request for information. That is different from receiving an enforcement notice or another statutory notice.

An owner should still respond carefully. Early correspondence can reveal which date or use the council disputes and what evidence it already holds. But if a statutory enforcement notice arrives, its own procedural requirements and appeal deadline take priority.

Keep Other Property Rules Separate

Planning enforcement time limits concern planning control. They do not automatically settle Building Regulations, licensing, restrictive covenants, title rights or other property-law requirements.

A use or development may become immune from planning enforcement without resolving separate obligations under another regime. The same evidence should not be assumed to prove compliance with every type of property regulation.

Conclusion

Planning enforcement time limits in England now require particular care because the law changed on 25 April 2024. Relevant operational development and changes of use to a single dwellinghouse may fall under either the older four-year period or the newer ten-year period depending on the date, while other breaches generally remain subject to ten years.

The calculation is only as reliable as the evidence behind it. Substantial completion, the start and continuity of a use, previous enforcement action and any allegation of deliberate concealment can all affect the analysis.

Aldwych Legal supports clients across England with planning-dispute preparation and enforcement responses. Building an accurate chronology early can help establish whether a time-limit argument is genuinely available and ensure that a potentially strong case is not weakened by missing evidence or a missed appeal deadline.

Key Takeaways

• England’s planning enforcement time limits changed on 25 April 2024, affecting the duration for which action can be taken.
• For operational development completed on or after 25 April 2024, the enforcement period is set at ten years, while transitional rules preserve a four-year period for developments completed before this date.
• Substantial completion of a project is the key date for determining the relevant enforcement period, not merely when work began or materials were delivered.
• Property owners need to gather solid evidence, such as dated agreements and utility bills, to establish a timeline of historical use that may conflict with council disputes.
• Ground (d) of an enforcement notice can be used to argue that no action could be taken at the time of the notice’s issuance, but must be supported by clear and factual evidence.
• A Lawful Development Certificate can confirm the lawfulness of an existing use or development if enforcement actions are no longer viable, though it requires substantial evidence from the applicant.