Mobile Home in Garden

[chanel5]

I live in a small town, in a built up residential area with fairly large gardens. My road is a cul de sac with fourteen houses. My neighbour is planning to put a mobile home (static caravan) in his garden for his daughter and son in law (with one child) to live in. He is plumbing the site from the garden water supply.
Can he do this? Doesn't he need to have planning permission? A few of the neighbours are a bit put out about it, but nobody wants to be the one to contact the coucil.
One of our other neighbours was refused permission to covert his bungalow to a chalet on the grounds that it would not be in keeping with the rest of the buildings. What about a mobile home? Any planners out there who could give us an idea of the law on this?

[Nosha123]

I may be wrong but I thought that if the caravan is a permanent fixture (ir not temporary!) then yes it needs planning!

When building a house you are allowed to live in one on site but only whilst the work is going on - thats why I know this!

I know they arent doing building work.. but it would lead me to think they do have to have planning. You could check on your Councils website.. they may have the policy on their for caravans!!

[heathfield]

In a residential area, some councils actually place a time limit on how long a caravan may be parked on your property. Some councils will not allow residency in a caravan on your property. It's really your neighbour who should make himself aware of the local council byelaws before he goes ahead. Either that, or you find out, and approach him with a ''By the way, about your caravan, did you know that...etc.''

[craft1948]

The estate I live on has a covenant forbidding caravans to be kept on the properties. My neighbour has to store his elsewhere.

[Ethel]

Speak to your council.

According to point 16 - planning permission is needed

http://www.north-dorset.gov.uk/buildings_and_s tructures_in_my_garden.htm

But according to this, it may not be:

http://www.planning-applications.co.uk/caravan s.htm

[ethandron]

we live in a cul-de-sac and there are two houses which have caravans tucked away down the side behind gates, us being one of them. there's a covenant on all our properties saying we can't but no-one has ever complained. these covenants (for towing caravans) are virtually impossible to enforce, no-one is really interested unless it's unsightly or causing an obstruction by being parked in the road or something. i believe it's completely differente for static caravans though, or if someone were to start to live full time in ours.

[madmaggot]

Report it to the council!

Why should these people be allowed to do as they please regardless of how others are affected? Even if local by-laws allow a caravan tobe parked at the property it can only be lived in for a maximum of 28 days per year without planning permission.

[chanel5]

Thanks, everyone. None of the neighbours mind the touring caravans which are parked up the side of some of the houses. These cause no probs to anyone. But this one will be a permanent residence and as the daughter and her partner are fond of loud music (we hear it blasting from their cars on a regular basis) neighbours are a bit worried about noise. We are looking into the planning regulations for this area.
Your answers are much appreciated.

[buildersmate]

He definitely needs Planning Consent - as others have said. He won't get it either.

[Devon-Cream]

The bad news is that you CAN have a caravan (and a mobile home comes under the definition of a caravan as laid down in the relevant caravan act of 1960) in your garden to use as another bedroom but NOT for use as a separate 'home'.

This link explains it more fully...
http://www.planning-applications.co.uk/caravans.htm

From what you say, your neighbour is planning on letting his daughter and her family live in the caravan and for that he WILL need planning permission. It may well be that he is not fully cognisant of the planning regulations and therefore once daughter and her family are occupying the caravan the council will be able to issue them all with an enforcement notice requiring removal of the offending mobile home.