Cookies on Fareham Borough Council's website

We use some essential cookies to make this site work. We'd like to set analytics cookies to understand how you use this site.

For more detailed information, see our Cookies page

Accept non-essential cookies Reject non-essential cookies

Essential cookies

These cookies are necessary for core functionality, such as security and network management. They always need to be on.

We use Google Analyitics to measure how you use the Fareham Borough Council website. These cookies collect information about how you got to the site, the pages you visit and how long you spend on each page, and what you click on.

Some pages of Fareham Borough Council's website include videos hosted on Vimeo and YouTube. If you enable this setting, this may result in the video sharing platform collecting information about your viewing for analytics and advertising purposes. If you don’t enable this setting, the pages will include external links instead.

Save and Close
Residents Business What's On MyAccount

Press Release

22 April 2025

High Court dismisses Titchfield Festival Theatre Legal Challenge

A High Court judgment issued on 16 April has confirmed that the unauthorised theatre use of the Arden Theatre in St Margaret’s Lane, Titchfield, must cease within two months and various internal structures associated with the theatre use removed within seven months.  

In August last year, the Planning Inspectorate dismissed an appeal by Titchfield Festival Theatre and upheld a planning enforcement notice served by Fareham Borough Council, requiring the unauthorised theatre use of the Arden Theatre to cease.  

In November 2024, Titchfield Festival Theatre commenced legal action through the Courts challenging the planning appeal decision issued by the Planning Inspector in August. The challenge was on points of law, with Titchfield Festival Theatre arguing that the Planning Inspector erred in law in the way they dealt with some of the issues raised. 

The High Court judgment in respect of this legal challenge found that the Planning Inspector did not make any error of law in their decision and Titchfield Festival Theatre’s challenge was dismissed in its entirety. Titchfield Festival Theatre was also ordered by the High Court to pay the Secretary of State’s costs incurred in resisting the legal challenge.

Chairman of the Planning Committee, Cllr David Foot, said:

"I'm pleased the High Court has found the Planning Inspector’s decision legally sound which, in turn, upholds the Planning Enforcement Notice served by this Council. It is extraordinary that, despite warnings, Titchfield Festival Theatre chose to build a 450-seat theatre without planning permission. I want to reassure all residents that this Council will act against any development carried out without planning permission and deemed unacceptable in planning terms."

The Council’s planning enforcement notice is now effective and requires the theatre use of the Arden Theatre to cease within two months and various structures associated with that use to be removed within seven months.


ENDS


For further information contact:

Customer Enquiries

Tel: 01329 236100
Email: customerservicecentre@fareham.gov.uk

Media Enquiries

The Communications Team
Tel: 01329 824310
Email: publicity@fareham.gov.uk
Fax: 01329 550576

Keep in touch on the go

Like us on FacebookFollow us on Twitter