Loading document...
The PlanningAppeals Administrator Cabinet Office Government Office Douglas Isleof Man IM1 3PN
23 January2026
Dear Sir/Madam
Thank you for allowing us to appeal against the original decision to reject our above application for retrospective planning.
In making my statements of case I would firstly like to address the fencing that has been erected.
On the rejection notice the following statement was made:
I don’t feel that this statement with regards to the visual impact is a fair reason for rejection given the following:
These demonstrate that there is already fencing in the area and we have not erected anything wildlydifferent.
Also, whilst I appreciate you have no remit over hedgingI certainlydon’t feel our fence detracts from the area and even if they brought their hedging into good order our fence would still look fine.
Other reasons that we feel should be considered with regards to the rejection is our personal privacy.
Our house stands on a corner plot. Unfortunately, this means that if any passerby were to follow the road round from Ballachrink Drive into Snaefell Crescent (and the converse direction) they have full view into the downstairs front rooms of our property for the full 180 degrees.
This I feel is rather uniqueto the area as although there are other corner plots, no other properties have the same viewing perspective and certainly not the full 180 degrees as ours given our property sits slightly below road level meaning we are at eye level.
I have included a photo taken from the junction of Ballachrink Drive and Snaefell Crescent showing the front view of our property. For perspective, the downstairs room on the left is our lounge and to the right is a bedroom.
As you can see from the photo the fence hasn’t given us total blockage and privacy, you can still clearly see the windows but if we were to not have this fence then this would greatly reduce our privacy and given, I have a 15-year-old daughter we certainly value the privacy.
Another reason for us opting for a fence is our pets, whilst they are not let loose in the garden without supervision, we want them to be safe. We want to be able to sit in our garden in the summer months with the dogs and have peace of mind they are not going to escape.
Hedging simply does not provide us with a sufficient continuous barrier due to the natural gaps etc that occur in hedging. The small boundary wall that adjoins Snaefell Crescent is only a foot or two high, and this can be easily jumped over therefore we had to erect something taller.
Just to reiterate we did consider hedging but simply the fact we could fully secure the garden all the way round Snaefell Crescent we didn’t feel it was appropriate given the possibility our dogs could get out onto the highway.
When the fence was erected, I simply did not realise I needed planningas in my naivety I thought it was within my property boundary and therefore there shouldn’t be an issue. However, as discussed with the planning enforcement when they came to visit when they informed me anything over a metre requires planning approval hence the retrospective application.
We would consider perhaps lowering the height of the fence but we still would like to retain some semblance of privacy in our property. I am 1.8m tall and I can see over the fence going round so I am not sure where a compromise (if that’s allowable) would be.
The second area of consideration is the hard standingarea.
I feel perhaps I was not detailed enough and succinct in my initial explanations.
There is a small patch of land next to our drive that has always been there but previously there was a boundary wall that the previous owner removed (whether accident or design I don’t know). This patch was behind that wall. I have included a picture again for your ease where you can see this area.
What I propose to do is not actually create anything new per se. I wish to tidy this up and lay some gravel to simply change the aesthetics of it. We were told by the planningenforcement that as the wall was gone we had to apply for planning here.
This area was once part of the garden and is currently made up of soil so is already permeable and water currently soaks awaywithout issue.
Per myinitial appeal letter of 24 December 2025 I wish to do the following:
The proposal for this is to scrape the surface to level it, lay a permeable membrane to keep away weeds and then lay gravel/stones retaining the overall permeability. I do not propose to lay any form of impermeable substrate.
The gravel/stones will be loose to maintain permeability and will not be bound by concrete/resin or any other such binding substance.
One key comment is also that this will not be a driveway of any kind. Per the above image you can see the height of the kerb etc it is not suitable for a driveway and nor do we intend to apply to drop the kerb etc.
Finally, I think the fact that we received no objections to our application. This includes Onchan Commissioners who approved our proposal. I think the fact that our local authority has no objection is a big plus for us. They did not pass comment on the look or appearance of the fencing.
I sincerely thank you for taking your time to consider this appeal and reading my statements.
I would welcome any points of clarification and if a site visit is planned (which I would welcome) I would like chance to attend so we can discuss and clarify and items to ensure you have all the facts for consideration as more often that not face to face you can resolve a query far quicker.
If you have any queries or wish to arrange to visit the site, please do not hesitate to contact me. My email address is [redacted] and my phone number is [redacted]
Yours sincerely
Robert Todd
Copyright in submitted documents remains with their authors. Request removal
View as Markdown