Town and Country Planning Act 1990

183 Stop notices

(1) Where in respect of any land the local planning authority—

(a) have served a copy of an enforcement notice requiring a breach of planning control to be remedied; but

(b) consider it expedient to prevent, before the expiry of the compliance period, the carrying out of any activity which is, or is included in, a matter alleged by the notice to constitute the breach,

they may at any time before the notice takes effect serve a notice prohibiting the carrying out of that activity on the land, or any part of it specified in the notice.

(2) A notice under subsection (1) is in this Act referred to as a “stop notice”.

(3) A stop notice shall not prohibit—

(a) the use of any building as a dwellinghouse, or

(b) the use of land as the site for a caravan occupied by any person as his only or main residence, or

(c) the taking of any steps specified in the enforcement notice as required to be taken in order to remedy the breach of planning control.

(4) For the purposes of subsection (3) “caravan” has the same meaning as it has for the purposes of Part I of the [1960 c. 62.] Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960.

(5) Where the period during which an activity has been carried out on land (whether continuously or otherwise) began more than 12 months earlier, a stop notice shall not prohibit the carrying out of that activity on that land unless it is, or is incidental to, building, engineering, mining or other operations or the deposit of refuse or waste materials.

(6) A stop notice may be served by the local planning authority on any person who appears to them to have an interest in the land or to be engaged in any activity prohibited by the notice.

(7) The local planning authority may at any time withdraw a stop notice (without prejudice to their power to serve another) by serving notice to that effect on persons served with the stop notice.