Waverley Borough Council CIL injustice continues…
An open letter to Waverley councillors from the Waverley Borough Council CIL Injustice campainers:
Dear Councillors,
We hope you are having a good summer. Despite continued support from many, for which we are very grateful, the saga continues. One victim’s bill increases by £1,000 of interest a month, he is trying to sell his family home in a flat property market to pay, continually dropping the price; this issue will likely end up costing him c.£300,000. All because of an administrative error. So our resolve to fight this and the other cases is undeterred. In light of the narrowly defined CIL discretionary review that only looks at council error, we continue our CAMPAIGN FOR DISCRETION for both Homeowner and Agent Error .
Through FOI requests, we discovered other councils show considerable discretion to homeowners in 4 ways, please see below. Not all councils have responded and others said they have not encountered these issues due to heavy proactive communication to homeowners. As a reminder, Waverley’s charging rate is second highest in the country (behind Richmond), so all the more reason Waverley should exercise extreme care & discretion towards homeowners. Overall from these FOI responses received to date, there is widespread discretion & common sense being applied.
| Council example | The 4 ways they manage homeowners generally or cases of resident error | FOI feedback on CIL discretion towards administrative errors from homeowners |
| Worcester Council | Automatic exemption (of all homeowners) | The CIL charging regime does not operate for homeowners developing their own homes. There is no charging attached to this type of development. |
| Wakefield Council | Automatic exemption (of all homeowners) | When the council adopted CIL, it was agreed and approved at Cabinet that residential extensions and annexes would be automatically exempt from CIL. |
| Gloucester Council | Automatic exemption (of all homeowners) | Extensions, annexes and self-build dwellings there is a £0 charge per square metre in Gloucester. |
| Bournemouth Council | Automatic exemption (of all homeowners) | Extensions are not charged CIL |
| Torbay | Automatic exemption (of all homeowners) | Zero charge homeowners |
| Newark and Sherwood | Withdraw CIL liability notice (in case of homeowner error) | If an administrative mistake is made by a genuine self-builder by not submitting a form on time, the council would show discretion and would not insist on the CIL charges being paid. |
| West Berkshire Council | Withdraw CIL liability notice (in case of homeowner error) | Already well documented. |
| East Hampshire | Withdraw CIL liability notices (in case of homeowner error) | Where a mishap occurs in terms of late submission of a form, the officer may discuss the case with the CIL team and waive the charge. |
| Islington | Withdraw CIL liability notice (in case of homeowner error) | If an administrative mistake is made by a genuine self-builder the council would show discretion and would not insist on the Cil being paid. |
| Lincoln Council | Would show discretion | This scenario has not yet occurred (of homeowners being charged CIL) but if it were then we would use discretion as LPA. |
| Winchester Council | Would show discretion | We have had a few cases over the years and are willing to consider extenuating circumstances. |
| Windsor and Maidenhead | Would show discretion | We are able to exercise some discretion in assessing cases |
| Cheltenham Council | Would show discretion | We exercise discretion on a case by case basis |
| Hounslow | Allow late filing | The council does allow late submission of notices from housebuilders without penalty. The council is always willing to be fair and understanding when homeowners misunderstand what they are required to do at any point in the process. |
| Cornwall | Allow late filing | We allow late filing of forms to support self-builders/homeowners |
| Stroud | Allow late filing | Allow late filing out of goodwill |
| Yorkshire and Humber | Allow late filing | We can apply discretion to applicants in relation to providing details such as late forms |
| Havant | Allow late filing | We allow late filing of commencement notices |
| South Oxfordshire | Allow late filing | We allow a grace period of one month for submitting the commencement notice |
Now is the time to do the right thing and we kindly ask ALL Councillors to put aside allegiances & demand the Executive Committee show FULL discretion to all Homeowners.
If a genuine Homeowner had submitted correct paperwork and would have been granted exemption – they WILL be treated as if they had
“CIL was never intended to be used this way! “- Rt Hon Matthew Pennycook, July 2025
We the undersigned are all Waverley Victims of CIL, fighting AGAINST the CIL INJUSTICE. and we have no allegiance to any Political Party.
Signed
Ms Baxter
Mr and Mrs Boyman
Mr and Mrs Crawford
Mr and Mrs Colvin
Mr and Mrs Dally
Mr and Mrs Garnett
Mr and Mrs Grant
Mr and Mrs King
Mr and Mrs Pateman
Mr and Mrs Siderfin
Mr and Mrs Wingfield