Decision

To confirm the Immediate Article 4 Direction for the Whittlesey Town Council area*, which removes permitted development rights under Schedule 2, Part 11, Class C of the GPDO 2015 relating to the demolition, removal or alteration of traditional mud walls without the need for planning permission.

*(Wards of Whittlesey East and Villages, Whittlesey Lattersey, Whittlesey North-West and Whittlesey South).

Reasons for the decision

In January 2026 Cabinet approved the implementation of Immediate Article 4 Direction which came into force on 5 February 2026.  The decision was made to protect Whittlesey’s traditional mud walls, which are a distinctive and increasingly rare feature of the town’s historic environment. These walls make a significant contribution to local character, townscape quality, and the historic development pattern of Whittlesey, and their cumulative loss would result in harm to the area’s heritage significance.

Permitted development rights currently allow for the demolition or removal of such walls without the need for planning permission. The exercise of these rights has resulted, and continues to pose a risk, of incremental and irreversible loss of mud walls, undermining the special character and identity of the town. Article 4 Direction is therefore considered necessary to ensure that proposals affecting mud walls are subject to appropriate planning control, enabling their significance to be properly assessed and, where possible, retained or sensitively managed.

Following this decision, a public consultation was held between the 5 February and the 16 March 2026.

The above public consultation period resulted in Nil objection responses and Nil support responses for the Article 4 Direction. The consultation to the Secretary of State garnered no objection or support. 

This decision now seeks to confirm the Immediate Article 4 Direction introduced on 5 February 2026. Immediate Article 4 Directions must be confirmed within six months of coming into force; otherwise, they automatically lapse.

Alternative options considered

The only alternative considered was not confirming the Immediate Article 4 Direction and allowing it to lapse. This was not appropriate, as the original reasons for introducing the Direction remain valid.

The consultation has neither received strong support or objection.