We are currently carrying out major upgrade works affecting some of our online services, such as searching for planning applications, MyMelton search function and our bin collection date search. We apologies for the inconvenience.
We are currently carrying out a major upgrades to our planning system. During this time, we are unable to access planning records, process planning applications, or respond to many planning enquiries.
Planning Enforcement Information
Planning Service System Upgrade
To support a major upgrade to the Planning and Enforcement management system, the Planning Service will experience a planned system outage between 21 and 28 August 2026.
During this time:
- Customers will be unable to access planning records through the public planning portal.
- The Planning Service will be unable to validate, process or determine planning applications.
- Planning Enforcement casework will be affected.
- We will be unable to respond to many planning enquiries where access to system records is required.
We have been preparing carefully for this upgrade and we're working hard to keep disruption to a minimum.
This upgrade forms part of our ongoing Planning Service improvement programme and will help us provide a more reliable and efficient service in the future.
Whilst system access is expected to be restored after 28 August, customers may continue to experience some delays during the week commencing 31 August 2026 whilst officers complete testing, validate data and work through the backlog created during the outage.
We apologise for any inconvenience and thank you for your patience and understanding.
The Planning Enforcement department look into complaints about potential breaches of planning control.
These might include:
- unauthorised building works
- untidy land
- removal of protected trees
- breaches of planning conditions
- unauthorised changes to use of buildings or land
The primary aim to achieve a balance between freedom of landowners to use and alter their land or properties whilst at the same time needing to safeguard amenities from significant harm. This is set out in the Town and County Planning Act 1990.
Developers and landowners are advised to make sure they have the necessary approval to undertake work before they start and not assume that they will get consent retrospectively.
We are able to offer planning pre-application advice to assist with this.
Report a breach to planning enforcement
If you are concerned about a development near you which you think does not have planning permission, you can tell us about it by submitting a planning enforcement complaint.
What happens next?
Whilst there is a range of actions available to us, enforcement action is a discretionary power. Action will only be considered if:
- The development has occurred without the appropriate permission or consent
- The alleged breach would result in significant and irreparable harm
Any enforcement action must be within the public interest and should be in line with the breach in question. All alleged breaches of planning control are investigated in accordance with our Planning Enforcement Policy.