Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979

7 Compensation for refusal of scheduled monument consent

(1) Subject to the following provisions of this section, where a person who has an interest in the whole or any part of a monument incurs expenditure or otherwise sustains any loss or damage in consequence of the refusal, or the granting subject to conditions, of a scheduled monument consent in relation to any works of a description mentioned in subsection (2) below, the Secretary of State shall pay to that person compensation in respect of that expenditure, loss or damage.

References in this section and in section 8 of this Act to compensation being paid in respect of any works are references to compensation being paid in respect of any expenditure incurred or other loss or damage sustained in consequence of the refusal, or the granting subject to conditions, of a scheduled monument consent in relation to those works.

(2) The following are works in respect of which compensation is payable under this section—

(a) works which are reasonably necessary for carrying out any development for which planning permission had been granted (otherwise than by a general development order) before the time when the monument in question became a scheduled monument and was still effective at the date of the application for scheduled monument consent;

(b) works which do not constitute development, or constitute development such that planning permission is granted therefor by a general development order ; and

(c) works which are reasonably necessary for the continuation of any use of the monument for any purpose for which it was in use immediately before the date of the application for scheduled monument consent.

For the purposes of paragraph (c) above, any use in contravention of any legal restrictions for the time being applying to the use of the monument shall be disregarded.

(3) The compensation payable under this section in respect of any works within subsection (2)(a) above shall be limited to compensation in respect of any expenditure incurred or other loss or damage sustained by virtue of the fact that, in consequence of the Secretary of State's decision, any development for which the planning permission in question was granted could not be carried out without contravening section 2(1) of this Act.

(4) A person shall not be entitled to compensation under this section by virtue of subsection (2)(b) above if the works in question or any of them would or might result in the total or partial demolition or destruction of the monument, unless those works consist solely of operations involved in or incidental to the use of the site of the monument for the purposes of agriculture or forestry (including afforestation).

(5) In a case where scheduled monument consent is granted subject to conditions, a person shall not be entitled to compensation under this section by virtue of subsection (2)(c) above unless compliance with those conditions would in effect make it impossible to use the monument for the purpose there mentioned.

(6) In calculating, for the purposes of this section, the amount of any loss or damage consisting of depreciation of the value of an interest in land—

(a) it shall be assumed that any subsequent application for scheduled monument consent in relation to works of a like description would be determined in the same way; but

(b) if, in the case of a refusal of scheduled monument consent, the Secretary of State, on refusing that consent, undertook to grant such consent for some other works affecting the monument in the event of an application being made in that behalf, regard shall be had to that undertaking.

(7) References in this section to a general development order are references to a development order made as a general order applicable (subject to such exceptions as may be specified therein) to all land.