I have a question regarding planning permission. After applying for planning permission for internal structural changes, such as taking down a wall; does the local authority actually check the work that has been done or does it just issue paperwork without a physical inspection?

If it is a farmhouse and an internal (unseen from the outside) wall for example, the locals do not really get planning permission. They just knock the wall down. As nothing will have been blueprinted over the years, only the house size in square metres would of been recorded, when it comes to selling the house you would just be selling a 65 sq m2 house for example.

New builds will have been blueprinted and therefore will have a record of two small rooms being knocked into one for example.

If you are in a panel house (i.e. apartment block) whereby you illegally remove a supporting wall, you will be in big trouble.

Regardless of the above said, if you get planning permission they rarely inspect small jobs (i.e. a knocked down wall) unless it is a major job. Its a bit like a black hat job versus a 'professional job'......you take your chances.

We have made friends with the ex-mayor of our village,and we were chatting about planning permission for internal works and she just shrugged and said its our house and what happens in it is our business.

I agree with what has been said above - most do not bother with permission for internal alterations - it is worth pointing out that as of January this year the regs regarding building permission have changed.

Now permission is not needed, but notification is. You need to put in notification of your works, in a detailed drawing (at 50:1) and the drawing has to be of sufficient detail that the works can happen , based on the drawings without question or ambiguity. This apparently applies to both new build and alterations up to 300M2 footprint.

Excellent, thanks. All useful information.