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Patios now need planning permission under new laws to prevent flooding
02 October 2008
Paving over your garden to create a patio will now see you fall foul of new planning laws as well as environmental campaigners.
Widespread flooding across the UK last summer affected 55,000 homes and businesses with two-thirds of those flooded because drains, sewers and ditches were overwhelmed through surface water flooding.
To tackle the problem of surface water flooding householders will no longer be able to pave their front gardens with impermeable materials, such as asphalt or paving blocks, without obtaining planning permission under new Government regulations which came into force on October 1.
Hewitsons solicitor Gemma Harris, who specialises in planning and environmental issues, said: "The trend has been for people to pave over their gardens to provide a patio, extra car parking or a hassle free decorative space. In addition, the demand for new housing has resulted in 'urban creep' with more of our green spaces being developed whether for housing or for other associated services.
"Unfortunately, the result has been that when it rains, water can no longer disappear into the ground but remains on top of these impermeable surfaces causing flooding. With global weather changes this is not likely to be a one-off freak occurrence but will happen again and again."
Until the introduction of the new regulations, householders could generally pave over their garden without planning permission under the General Permitted Development Order. But householders will now only be able to undertake such work without planning permission if they use permeable materials such as gravel. These materials are more expensive and may raise other issues such as increased noise.
Following last year's floods many people are still facing several months away from their homes and insured losses are approaching £3 billion. Since rainfall records began in 1766 there has not been a wetter May to July period. Surface water flooding was at its worst in cities such as Hull but many villages and individual properties also suffered across the country from Bristol to Newcastle.
For further information contact Gemma Harris on 01223 461155 or gemmaharris@hewitsons.com