Landlord Saad Ahmad, 44, of The Larches, Uxbridge, and his company Optimum Asset Investments Limited, have been ordered to pay a total of £7,589 after he added a front extension and first-floor side room to 15 Lynhurst Crescent without consent and then failed to remove it after he was given an enforcement notice.

Council officials were alerted by local residents, who then visited the property to confirm that work had been carried out without permission. Ahmad submitted a retrospective application which was refused due to its size, poor design and the “impact on the street.”

unattractive

Also, the Planning Inspectorate upheld the decision, describing the structure as “unattractive” and “blocky”.

Permission was subsequently put in for a revised scheme, but this was also refused after officers ruled it failed to address their earlier concerns, and a formal enforcement notice was issued requiring full demolition by 26 December of last year.

After he failed to remove the offending structure, Ahmad was summoned to Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court on 18 November, where he pleaded guilty to breaching planning control and failing to comply with an enforcement notice.

This should serve as a reminder to every resident, landlord or business, that the correct procedures must be followed when undertaking construction on a property or hiring contractors.”

The company was fined £3,000 plus a £1,200 victim surcharge and £3,363 for the prosecution’s costs, and Ahmad received an 18-month conditional discharge plus a £26 surcharge.

Cllr Steve Tuckwell, Cabinet Member for Planning, Housing and Growth, says: “This should serve as a reminder to every resident, landlord or business, that the correct procedures must be followed when undertaking construction on a property or hiring contractors.”

According to Hillingdon Council, the extension remains in place, but says further action will follow if it is not removed.

Picture courtesy of Hillingdon Council.