Enforcement guidance - Stop Notices and Completion Certificates

Stop Notices

Where Cumberland Council considers it appropriate, we may serve a Stop Notice on any person where we reasonably believe is carrying on an activity that is an offence under these Regulations and which is causing, or where there is a significant risk of it causing, serious harm to the environment (including the health of animals).

We can also issue a Stop Notice if the activity will involve, or will be likely to involve, the commission of an offence under Regulations.

The notice must explain the steps required to remove or reduce the harm or risk of harm to the environment. It must also include:

• the reasons why we’ve issued the notice
• how a person can appeal the notice
• the consequences of failing to comply with the notice

Failure to comply with a Stop Notice is a criminal offence punishable by up to 2 years in prison.

Completion Certificates

Once we are satisfied that the person issued with a Stop Notice has taken the steps specified in the notice, we must issue a certificate confirming this. This is called a Completion Certificate.

Once we have issued this the Stop Notice ends.

A person who has been given a Stop Notice can ask us for a certificate at any time and we must decide as to whether to issue one within 14 days.

We must give a written answer to the person if we decide not to issue the certificate.

Appeals against Stop Notices and Completion Certificates

The person receiving the Stop Notice may appeal against it if they think:

• we made an error in the facts
• we didn’t apply the law properly
• our decision was unreasonable
• they had not committed an offence under the Regulations

Anyone wishing to appeal a final decision should do so in writing to The First Tier Tribunal General Regulatory Chamber.

Compensation

We must compensate any person if:

• the Stop Notice is later withdrawn or amended by us because the decision to issue it was unreasonable
• any step specified in the notice was unreasonable
• the person successfully appeals against the Stop Notice because the issue of the notice was unreasonable
• we unreasonably refuse to issue a Completion Certificate

Appeal against compensation decision

A person may appeal against a decision not to award compensation or the amount of compensation awarded on the grounds that our decision was unreasonable or that that the amount we offer is incorrect.