Planning permission: does that sound complicated? Bureaucratic and mysterious?
But actually, once you cut through all that, the underlying principles are quite logical and very straightforward indeed.
So here is a plain English version of when you need planning permission and when you don’t.
For many smaller projects, you might think you need planning permission, but you often won’t.
Extensions up to a certain size, loft conversions, internal alterations or outbuildings in your garden are classed as ‘Permitted Development’, which basically means they have been pre-approved by the government. For Home Renovations Burford, visit https://precisionbuildersltd.co.uk/services/home-renovations/burford
So you can create a new room, install a new bathroom, build a garden office and so on.
This seems completely sensible. After all, most of us are just looking to make some fairly useful and harmless home improvements. The flipside is that Permitted Development itself has its limits.
The general idea is to let people crack on within certain size thresholds or in certain locations.
For example, if you live in a conservation area, a National Park or a listed building, there will be rules around what is allowed, and these are likely to tighten up the rules for what amounts to full planning permission for otherwise PD schemes.
You may still be able to make changes – for instance, to windows or to the roofline – but that depends on the specific rules for where you live. And some projects simply never come under the umbrella of Permitted Development.
For instance, you would need full permission if you wanted to change the use of a building or create significant extensions that exceeded the normal PD thresholds.
If you want to build a new dwelling (whether it’s for yourself or to sell) or make major structural changes, then you’ll need to submit a formal application to your local planning office.
If you’re at all unsure about whether you will need permission, it’s worth checking.
All it takes is a quick phone call to your local planning authority, and they will tell you what you need to do. And that doesn’t cost anything.
