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Planning Permission & Development

What is Planning Permission all about?

The planning process is designed to give people control (through their elected representatives) of developments within their area. Ultimately decisions are made by the Planning Committee of the Local Authority which is made up of Councillors. Of course there are rules on how they make their decisions and in practice almost every element of the process is governed by statute. In fact there are very few instances today where planning permission is not needed to undertake development, therefore it is essential to understand what constitutes 'development' for the purposes of the Planning Acts.

The Town & Country Planning Act 1990 defines development as ........

'the carrying out of building, engineering, mining or other operations in, on, over or under land, or the making of any material change in the use of any buildings or other land'

This is extremely wide ranging although there are what are known as Permitted Development Rights which deal with forms of development that do not necessarily require planning permission. Although there are various forms of PDR's covering different classes of land use, from a domestic point of view they generally refer to minor extension work provided certain conditions are met.

Two storey extension - Ifold

Note also that the definition includes change of use thus implying that it is not necessary to do any building work whatsoever but still require Planning Permission.

Other considerations related to planning permission include Conservation Area Consent, Tree Preservation Orders and a host of other minor but important legal requirements which may have an impact on a particular development.

This site contains a rough guide to cases where planning permission may not be required but please bear in mind that the details can be highly complex and should be considered on a case by case basis. Please also bear in mind that Local Authorities can remove permitted development rights by agreement. This is sometimes done as part of the planning consent process and therefore the planning history of the land must be considered.

It is possible that you do not require Planning Permission at all (although you may still need Building Control Approval). In general land has attached to it what are called Permitted Development Rights which as their name suggests, allows certain forms of development without the need to obtain formal Planning Permission.

There are also a number of key areas for which Planning Permission is waived and therefore can be undertaken without reference to the local planning Authority. These key points do vary from Authority to Authority however.

If you have any doubts about the status of your proposed work, you are strongly advised to consult your Local Authority before proceeding.

Making A Domestic Planning Application

In order to make a planning application to your Local Authority you will need to have the necessary drawings and documents prepared for the submission. These will need to include elevations and floor plans as well as site and location plans. Generally the Local Authority is concerned with the use and appearance of the development as well as it's impact on the immediate area (or wider if you live in a Conservation Area).

Two storey extension to rear of house - Roffey

You will need to decide which type of application you want to submit. It is possible to make either an outline application or an application for full permission. The requirements in each case are similar and detailed information will be required concerning the proposal, such as the nature of the proposed development, it's position, size and appearance.

The Council will consider things that may not at first appear to be obvious such as the impact on parking on the street and the capacity of the sewage system. For a small domestic extension the impact may be negligible but if you wish to add extra bedrooms, bathrooms etc this implies that more people will (or could) live in the house. This in turn means that there may be a requirement for additional parking and so on.

Many domestic applications are made to extend an existing building in order to create increased space within a house. This form of planning application would normally be made for full permission. It is important to consider the overall design of such an extension as this will be key to the success of the application - not to mention the overall effect of the completed project on the house.