The director of a company who refused to remove scaffolding yards built on his land without planning permission has been handed a huge fine.

John Jack Gardiner, director of Highquest Properties Ltd, appeared before magistrates in Sevenoaks on Wednesday.

His company had given a tenancy to a scaffolding business to operate without planning permission and the yard was deemed to be "unsightly and harmful to the character and openness of the Green Belt".

A planning enforcement notice was issued to Highquest Properties in April 2012 in relation to the director's home address in Stones Cross Road, Crockenhill.

The company was required to stop using the site as a scaffolding yard and to remove everything, including equipment, hardstanding, fencing, racking, vehicles and containers.

It initially complied with the notice in 2012, but it came to light that illegal activities started again in 2018.

Site visits by Sevenoaks District Council (SDC) found at least nine new businesses paying rent to Highquest Properties Ltd to use the land as scaffolding yards.

A guilty plea was entered on behalf of the company for breaching the planning enforcement notice and it was handed a £13,400 fine, and told to pay £250 in costs, as well as a victim surcharge of £120.

The local authority will take further legal action if the yards are not removed.

Cllr Julia Thornton, the council’s cabinet member for development and conservation, said: "Despite this being a long-running case, we were prepared to do what was necessary to protect this Green Belt site.

"We gave the business every opportunity to comply with our enforcement notice. However, as no steps were taken to make amends, we had no option but to take court action.

"We will not hesitate to take further action if these illegal scaffolding yards aren’t removed."