Worthing Developer Fined Over Planning Breaches

A property developer has been ordered to pay more than £16,000 after repeatedly failing to comply with planning rules in Worthing.

Ryan Flippance, a director of Harlington Homes, was prosecuted by Worthing Borough Council after breaching planning conditions linked to a housing development in High Salvington.

Permission was first granted in 2013 for additional homes to be built in the gardens of a property called The Drive in Mill Lane.

Several amendments were later approved, but conditions included demolishing The Drive before certain homes could be occupied, and fitting some windows with obscured glazing to protect neighbours’ privacy.

Council officers found that neither condition had been met. They also discovered that a double garage had been built instead of the single garage approved, close to the roots of a protected Turkey Oak tree.

The council issued a breach of condition notice requiring Mr Flippance to demolish The Drive, alter the windows, and reduce the size of the garage.

But when he failed to act, the authority prosecuted.

Mr Flippance initially pleaded not guilty but changed his plea to guilty at Worthing Magistrates’ Court on the day of his trial. He was fined £6,750 and ordered to pay more than £9,500 in prosecution costs and a victim surcharge.

The council says the required work must still be carried out to bring the site in line with planning permission.