There is a little known piece of legislation from the 1980 Local Government Planning and Land Act called a PROD - a Public Request to Order Disposal. A PROD allows an individual to force a public landowner to take action over derelict publicly-owned land or even be forced to put it up for sale.
It covers land in England and Wales owned by county, borough and district councils, police authorities, the Housing Corporation, the Civil Aviation Authority, British Shipbuilders, the Coal Authority, the BBC and the National Rivers Authority.
How does it work?
First of all you need to find out the owner of the land: ask neighbours, check the Land Registry or contact your local authorities’ empty property office.
If it is publicly-owned, then you can complain in writing to the Director of Planning at your nearest Regional Government Office. You don’t need to notify the owner.
How long does it take?
The Government will contact the owner and find out as much as possible about the property and the owner's reasons for keeping it empty. The Secretary of State will decide whether the site should just be entered onto the Land Registers or whether an Order of Disposal should be made. If disposal is decided on, the owner will be given 42 days in which to make representation before a decision is made. The sale would usually be on the open market - by auction, tender, or private treaty.
