1. Under Environmental Information Regulations (2004), I ask you to provide:
a) The addresses of all listed buildings in your area that have been altered or demolished without authorised consent between January 2015 into the present day
b) Whether it was alteration or demolition that took place in each case
c) The year in which each offence occurred
d) Whether enforcement action was taken in each case
With respect to the FOI request, which I note is stated as being made under Environmental Information Regulations (2004). According to Section 2-1 of the Regulations it appears it relates to information held concerning the state of the elements of the environment, matters such as the air, atmosphere, water, soil, land, landscape, and natural sites, as well as biological diversity. It seemingly does not request covering built structures, historic or not.

Limitations with data available
• With respect to question asked to provide ‘addresses of all listed buildings in your area that have been altered or demolished without authorised consent between January 2015 into the present day’, it is only possible to list the address of those properties where such works have been reported to and/or observed by Council staff. Experience has shown there are undoubtedly other listed buildings within the enquiry period where there have been alteration and/or demolition works undertaken without consent having been sought and known to the Council.
• I have only been in post here since July 2019 and I am not aware of any records that my predecessor may have held in respect of unauthorised works to listed buildings.
• The DM Enforcement team only has electronic records from January 2019 and onwards, that can be interrogated for cases opened for unauthorised works to a listed building. Records held prior to 2019 were in a manner that did not identify or categorise them in such a way that ID's those cases relating to listed buildings. I have attached above the list of enforcement cases opened following reported unauthorised works to listed buildings.
• The Enforcement Team, except for Jason Varley, have taken up their posts from 2019 onwards. Jason says he could not recall any cases prior to 2019.

I have attached the Enforcement case list that goes back to January 2019. Please note many of the cases have been opened as a result of members of the public registering and/or a Council Officer notifying the Enforcement Team of potential unauthorised works. It should be noted that the list includes cases of reported works subsequently found not to be affecting a listed building or curtilage listed structure, but also cases of alleged works to a listed building that were unfounded (i.e. works were part of consented works or there was no breach). Whilst other cases opened had been for minor infringements such advert signage, or small alterations not necessary considered to alter what is of significance about the listed building. I have highlighted those on the Enforcement list that in my professional role would be those for consideration in terms of this FoI request.

The attached list ‘FOI Identified Enforcement LB – Unauthorised works’ pulls out those highlighted from the attachment ‘DC Enforcement logged cases since 2019’ and further provides responses with respect to whether works were alteration or demolition and whether formal Enforcement action took place. In the majority of the enforcement cases are closed without the need for formal action as the unauthorised works in the majority of cases the unauthorised works were subsequently authorised through retrospective applications.
There was only one case between 2019 and now where formal Planning Enforcement action was taken in the case of the Sultan Balti, 7 Market Place, Wokingham.

• Aside from the DC Enforcement list of cases opened due to reported unauthorised works to a listed building, I have also attached a list of all applications for Listed Building Consent made to this Council since 1st January 2015 (up to the end of May) with those listed buildings for which there has been works already undertaken without the benefit of consent. These properties can be identified by the use of the word ‘retrospective’ in the Description of Development - where this is the case, as part of the application it seeks consent to authorise those works undertaken previously without consent. A search through the list and the application records viewable on the Council’s website (see direct link https://planning.wokingham.gov.uk/FastWebPL/welcome.asp ) using the listed application number, it would be possible for the person who is making the FoI to be able to identify and look into these cases where unauthorised works to a listed building have been dealt with under an application for listed building consent.