Planning Permission Explained

Planning permission is usually required when building a new dwelling or making extensive changes to an existing one.

Decisions on whether to grant planning permission are made in line with national guidance (in the form of the National Planning Policy Framework) and the local planning policies set out by the local authority.

There are several types of planning permission available, each best suited to certain projects and builds:

Full planning permission offers consent for a project based on a detailed designed being provided.

Outline planning permission doesn't include any specifics in the design, but offers a 'permission in principle'. Outline planning permission doesn't give you consent to begin the work, it's used more often to explore whether a build would be viable. Following the granting of outline planning permission an application for ‘reserved matters’ — which may include the size of the proposed house, appearance, position, landscaping and access — will need to be submitted and approved before work can take place. 

Householder planning permission is used for permission to alter or extend an individual house within the boundary of the property. 

Planning permission is grated for a period of three years from the date full permission is granted, this means you have three years to discharge any pre-commencement conditions and start the build.

If your planning consent is about to expire, there are several options open to you. First, you can make what is known as a material start to the project, as you only need to start the project, not finish it, within the three year period. 

Second, you can reapply to the local planning authority, there is no longer an option to simply renew planning permission, so you will have to submit a re-application. Bear in mind that you are not guaranteed to receive planning again as your reapplication will be considered against current policy which may have changed since the original application.

See our handy guides and our permitted development rights explained page.

See our handy guides and our permitted development rights explained page.

See our handy guides and our permitted development rights explained page.

Planning permission is subject to a statutory 56 day turn around following validation, however if your scheme is more complex it can take longer. The local authority will request an extension of time to consider minor amendments to the proposed scheme or if they require more time to consider the application.

Securing planning permission doesn’t necessarily mean that you can start work straightaway, there are usually pre-commencement conditions that will need to be discharged prior to starting works, these pre-commencement conditions can include, but are not limited to, materials, bat mitigation, landscape, construction management plans.