Neighbours and Friends

Your neighbours and friends in Binfield can be your most important allies in fighting inappropriate Planning Applications.

You need to be aware of three key facts:

Only a very small number of people are contacted by BFBC about local Planning Applications and the bright red notices that should be fixed outside the site often vanish very quickly. So, it is quite possible that your neighbours and other local residents never know about the Planning Application until it is too late.
Anyone can object to a Planning Application, they don’t need to be on the Council’s notification list. They don’t even need to be a neighbour. If they live in Binfield and, by way of example, feel that the proposed development would spoil the character of the village, then they have every right to write in to the Planning Department and object to the Planning Application.
One factor that the Planning Department will use in determining whether to Approve or Refuse a Planning Application is the number of valid objections received from neighbours, consultees like BVPS or the Parish Council, and other recognised local representatives. Clearly if no objections are received then the Planning Application is more likely to be approved – subject to the Planning Officer being happy with the Application.

Therefore, you need to make contact with friends and neighbours in time for them to submit their objections before the “neighbourhood consultations” deadline; usually 4 weeks from the date of the Application. We find it often helps to prepare a simple leaflet or letter that can be dropped through the letterbox of all residents in the area.