Persimmon Homes has been ordered to stop work at its site in Ivybridge by South Hams District Council (SHDC).

The local authority issued a temporary stop notice after the developer started work on its Harford Mews site while still awaiting approval.

The council granted Persimmon planning permission for 101 homes and other works in March this year.

But SHDC said the developer needed to gain approval for a number of conditions before it could begin phase two of the project.

Persimmon applied to discharge these conditions in June, but this was still under consideration when it started work.

Council workers were soon tipped off and an enforcement officer visited the site on Monday, July 15 and issued the notice.

This means that no work can be carried out for up to 28 days to give the council time to complete their inquiries.

Cllr Lance Austen, ward member for Ivybridge West, said: “The pre-commencement conditions were placed on the developer for numerous reasons – to protect local residents from unnecessary noise and disruption, to monitor protected species near the site, to maintain the visual amenity of Dartmoor National Park and to ensure that surface water run-off does not pose a risk of flooding in the area.

“It may be that we approve the discharge of conditions application that Persimmon has submitted, but they shouldn’t be making that assumption.”

Persimmon admitted starting “preparatory work” on the site in a statement.

A spokeswoman said: “We would hope for this to be concluded by the end of July 2019, at which time Persimmon Homes is ready to commence the next stage of construction.”

The council aims to determine the application for discharge of conditions by August 8, 2019.

Anyone concerned about unauthorised development works in their area can contact the planning enforcement team at South Hams Council: https://www.southhams.gov.uk/article/3043/Report-a-Planning-Breach