Thank you all for your responses.
You do now have to pay for full planning permission if you PD rights have been removed. Apparently it is a Central Government directive and not within the remit of the Council's themselves. So sadly although I was advised in 2014 that I wouldn't need to for permission for anything that would have fallen under PD, we will now have to pay.
Can anyone help me on the sort of things I need to say in my supporting statement. It is going to cost me £276 to submit the Section 73 notice. Then I have to wait 8 weeks to see if we have been successful .... or longer, apparently! It's a joke. They take the PD rights away and then I have to pay to get them reinstated!! Whichever way I go, I know it is going to cost me.
It is not cheaper to apply for planning permission BTW. I just want what most other people have - the right to enjoy my home as I wish without the need of the council to own us at every turn.
If anyone can give me an idea of where to start, I would be very grateful. Thank you all...