The sorry story of Newbury House shows that permitted development too often makes people’s lives a misery (see my latest BD column here).

Really pleased that the Guardian took up the shocking story of this building – you can read the full article here. Rupert Jones went out to have a look for himself and managed to talk to a resident who confirmed that living there is just as bad as it looks and that he doesn’t even feel safe.

The RICS report, published in May, is also useful; recommending that this form of PD should be ended or, at the very least, subject to minimum space standards.