A single mother of six-year-old triplets has been given two weeks notice to cease trading in the middle of a pandemic despite the fact she was told in 2018 by the same Council that she did not require a planning application.

Lorraine Fulton who runs her dog grooming business Dapper Dogs from her home in Enniskillen received a letter from the Planning Office at Fermanagh and Omagh District Council on September 4 stating that her business is "unauthorised" and she needed to "cease use" by September 18. In the letter, which has been seen by The Impartial Reporter, the Planning Manager stated: "I refer to the above-mentioned unauthorised development which appears to be on land within your ownership. It appears to the Council that this constitutes a breach of planning control under the Planning Act (Northern Ireland) 2011 and should be remedied without delay."

However, on May 24, 2018 Lorraine received a letter from the same Planning Manager stating that following an investigation of her property, they had concluded that she did not require a planning application.

Speaking to this newspaper, Lorraine said: "The letter came from the Planning [Office] to say that I had to close my business of 20 years, that it was an unauthorised dog grooming business and I’m sitting going, 'you were out, you told me I was alright, I’ve had the environmental health out and I’ve been okay-ed there and I’ve paid business rates for the last three years and now you are telling me that I am an unauthorised business?'."

Lorraine explained that Planning Office personnel visited her premises when her dog grooming salon was fully operational. She claims that nothing has been changed to the property since and her business has been quieter than normal so she can't understand why they are now alleging that she is in breach of planning control.

"There has been no change to the building at all. I was closed eight weeks of lockdown and was busy catching up on backlog. Over summer I was away five out of the eight weeks of the summer holidays with my kids, I was not even in Fermanagh. I'm working on my own now, ordinarily there I had girls in helping me wash to try and get finished to lift the children from school. I'm quieter than I ever have been and nothing has changed," said Lorraine.

She continued: "They didn't come out and ask for my side of the story, and to get a letter to say the business that you have ran for 20 years, that you just have to close it down when you are paying rates, when they knew you exist and to say you are unauthorised when you clearly are authorised when the Planning Office sent you a letter to say you were okay."

Getting emotional, Lorraine added: "My children and my business are who I am. There's nothing else in my life, this is me. I am the triplets mummy and I am Dapper Dogs."

This newspaper contacted the Council regarding this matter.

When asked "what has been the breach of planning control?" a Council spokesman responded: "Alleged dog grooming business operating without the necessary grant of planning permission."

Responding to "what has changed from 2018 to 2020?", the spokesman stated: "The level of business use has increased since the previous investigation and the use now requires planning permission."