March 2017
Getting to speak to Enfield’s Head of Development Management was no easy task. I left several messages and emails. No response. I took some encouragement from listening to how Jamie Oliver got his breakthrough into the River Cafe. He rang every day trying to speak to Ruth Rogers leaving messages until one day he got through and was invited to an interview. It became part of my routine. Every day I rang and left a message. I resolved to make each call as if it were the first time, until one day he happened to pick up the phone. I had caught him unawares but I had got through. He was friendly enough and gave me an appointment for the next week beginning of March.
The meeting however was rather disappointing. He was unaware of the Right to Build legislation and the Registers. However he did mention that our timing was fortuitous as the Council had to work out its approach to the legislation and how to incorporate it into the local plan.
During the meeting we tried to establish if he was the right contact for the Right to Build, but he didn’t know at that point. On a positive note, he looked at the plots of land we had identified and thought they had potential for planning but we would need to speak to the property department about the possibility of purchasing them.
I left feeling uneasy. The process was not going to be an easy one. He did not give us a name there and then and it was unlikely he was going to. Next step: chase him for the contact details.
Diary of a Wannabe Self Builder 