Part XV Miscellaneous and General Provisions
Rights of entry
324 Rights of entry.
1
Any person duly authorised in writing by the Secretary of State or by a local planning authority may at any reasonable time enter any land for the purpose of surveying it in connection with—
a
the preparation, approval, adoption or making of a unitary development plan or a local plan relating to the land under Part II or the alteration of such a plan or a structure plan relating to the land under that Part, including the carrying out of any survey under that Part;
b
any application under Part III or sections 198 to 200, 220 or 221 or under any order or regulations made under any of those provisions, for any permission, consent or determination to be given or made in connection with that land or any other land under that Part or any of those sections or under any such order or regulations;
c
any proposal by the local planning authority or by the Secretary of State to make, issue or serve any order or notice under Part III (other than sections 94 and 96), Part VII or Part VIII or under any order or regulations made under any of those provisions.
2
Any person duly authorised in writing by the Secretary of State or a local authority may at any reasonable time enter any land for the purpose of ascertaining whether any of the functions conferred by sections 207 to 209 should or may be exercised in connection with the land or for the purpose of exercising any of those functions in connection with the land.
3
Any person duly authorised in writing by the local planning authority may at any reasonable time enter any land for the purpose of exercising a power conferred on the authority by section 225 if—
a
the land is unoccupied; and
b
it would be impossible to exercise the power without entering the land.
4
Any person who is an officer of the Valuation Office or is duly authorised in writing by the Secretary of State may at any reasonable time enter any land for the purpose of surveying it, or estimating its value, in connection with a claim for compensation under Part V in respect of that land or any other land.
5
Any person who is an officer of the Valuation Office or is duly authorised in writing by a local planning authority may at any reasonable time enter any land for the purpose of surveying it, or estimating its value, in connection with a claim for compensation in respect of that land or any other land which is payable by the local planning authority under Part IV, section 186, Part VIII (other than section 204), section 250(1) or Part XI (other than section 279(2) or (3) or 280(1)(c)).
6
Any person who is an officer of the Valuation Office or is duly authorised in writing by a local authority or Minister authorised to acquire land under section 226 or 228 or by a local authority who have power to acquire land under Part IX may at any reasonable time enter any land for the purpose of surveying it, or estimating its value, in connection with any proposal to acquire that land or any other land or in connection with any claim for compensation in respect of any such acquisition.
7
Any person duly authorised in writing by the Secretary of State or by a local planning authority may at any reasonable time enter any land in respect of which an order or notice has been made or served as mentioned in subsection (1)(c) for the purpose of ascertaining whether the order or notice has been complied with.
8
Subject to section 325, any power conferred by this section to survey land shall be construed as including power to search and bore for the purpose of ascertaining the nature of the subsoil or the presence of minerals in it.
9
In subsections (1)(c) and (7) references to a local planning authority include, in relation to a building situated in Greater London, a reference to the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England.
325 Supplementary provisions as to rights of entry. C1
1
A person authorised under section 324 to enter any land—
a
shall, if so required, produce evidence of his authority before so entering, and
b
shall not demand admission as of right to any land which is occupied unless 24 hours’ notice of the intended entry has been given to the occupier.
2
Any person who wilfully obstructs a person acting in the exercise of his powers under section 324 shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 2 on the standard scale.
3
If any person who, in compliance with the provisions of section 324, is admitted into a factory, workshop or workplace discloses to any person any information obtained by him in it as to any manufacturing process or trade secret, he shall be guilty of an offence.
4
Subsection (3) does not apply if the disclosure is made by a person in the course of performing his duty in connection with the purpose for which he was authorised to enter the premises.
5
A person who is guilty of an offence under subsection (3) shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum or on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or a fine or both.
6
Where any land is damaged—
a
in the exercise of a right of entry conferred under section 324, or
b
in the making of any survey for the purpose of which any such right of entry has been so conferred,
compensation in respect of that damage may be recovered by any person interested in the land from the Secretary of State or authority on whose behalf the entry was effected.
7
The provisions of section 118 shall apply in relation to compensation under subsection (6) as they apply in relation to compensation under Part IV.
8
No person shall carry out under section 324 any works authorised by virtue of subsection (8) of that section unless notice of his intention to do so was included in the notice required by subsection (1).
9
The authority of the appropriate Minister shall be required for the carrying out under that section of works so authorised if the land in question is held by statutory undertakers, and they object to the proposed works on the ground that the execution of the works would be seriously detrimental to the carrying on of their undertaking.
325AF1Rights of entry: Crown land
1
Section 324 applies to Crown land subject to the following modifications.
2
A person must not enter Crown land unless he has the relevant permission.
3
Relevant permission is the permission of—
a
a person appearing to the person seeking entry to the land to be entitled to give it, or
b
the appropriate authority.
4
In subsection (8) the words “Subject to section 325” must be ignored.
5
Section 325 does not apply to anything done by virtue of this section.
6
“Appropriate authority” must be construed in accordance with section 293(2).