Ruddington empty home owner fined and left with near £4,000 bill
Last updated: 8/9/2025
A homeowner who left three empty properties to deteriorate for nearly 30 years in a prominent village centre location has been fined and left with a bill for nearly £4,000.
Rushcliffe Borough Council(RBC) prosecuted Mark Reaston for failing to bring the properties on The Green in Ruddington back to a reasonable condition and to rectify the adverse effect it was having on the local community.
He was found guilty of 15 counts of failing to comply with Statutory Notices issued by the authority on September 3 at Nottingham Magistrates Court, contrary to Section 215 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.
The Council served the owner with notices in May 2023, following years of complaints about their derelict condition from residents living near to the site.
The notices instructed the owner to improve the external condition of the properties and gave him six months to carry out the works, which should have been completed by December 2023.
The Council’s Environmental Health Officer’s subsequently inspected the properties on five separate dates and found that the vast majority of the works had not been completed.
The Council lodged their case to the Court in autumn of 2024, and a plea hearing took place in February this year, with the owner pleading not guilty to the 15 charges.
The case went to trial on September 3, with the Court hearing that the owner had failed to comply with the notices and found him guilty of all 15 charges.
The court also found that there was significant detrimental effect on the community and that Mr Reaston had been wilfully non-compliant, negligent and had harmed the local environment, which forms part of the Ruddington Conservation Area.
He was fined a total of £3931.40, which also included the Council’s full costs.
Following this result, the Council will continue to pursue the works on the properties to rectify the adverse effect they are having on the neighbourhood and consider options that it has to bring the homes back into use.
RBC’s Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Planning and Housing Cllr Roger Upton said: “We share local residents’ frustration at the way in which these homes have been left in completely unacceptable states of disrepair for so long.
“Unoccupied homes can be detrimental to the lives of those in local communities. They can cause problems such as vandalism, anti-social behaviour and nuisance and also reduce the value of surrounding properties. We have been left with little choice than to pursue prosecution.”
Residents who have a query on an empty home, or who are an empty homeowner and want advice, or who wish to report an empty home can email emptyhomes@rushcliffe.gov.uk or visit www.rushcliffe.gov.uk/emptyhomes to find out more.
The Council offers a range of advice and support tools to assist owners over their empty home hurdle:
• Free property appraisal, including current value, rental value if habitable and cost of refurbishment works
• Links to estate agents and property investors, in order to find the most appropriate sale route for the owner
• Links with letting agents to advise on letting the property to family units, students, or as a House of Multiple Occupancy (HMO)
• Advice on upgrades to the property, to ensure all current regulatory standards are adhered to
• Advice on VAT and tax implications of being a landlord
• Guidance on the reduced rate of VAT on refurbishments of properties empty over two years
• A referral to other Council departments, such as planning or housing standards where necessary.
Cllr Upton added: “Whether a property is struggling to sell, needs repairs to make it habitable, or is in the process of going through probate, there are often difficult and substantial reasons why homes remain empty but we’re here to help and enforcement is a last resort.
“Where an owner has plans for the property, and is actively implementing them, we still make contact to see if we can further assist the plans to ensure they stay on track.
“If an owner fails to respond to repeated attempts to contact them, and there are no signs that the property will be occupied in the near future, the Council can consider a range of enforcement options.
They include compulsory purchase orders, an empty dwelling management order, enforced sale to recover debt or improvement notices where the Council can carry out the improvement works if the owner fails to themselves.”
Ruddington Parish Council Chairman Cllr Graham Fletcher said: “The Parish Council is very pleased to see meaningful action being taken to address these properties on our historic Green. We appreciate the efforts made and look forward to continued improvements that preserve the character of this important community space.”