Planning Permission
Are you …
- Planning to build on a green or brown field site?
- Planning to extend an existing building?
- Planning to knock-down an existing building?
- Planning to change the way an existing building or piece of land is used?
If the answer is yes to any of the above, you will most likely need planning permission
You do not have to own a building or a piece of land in order to get planning permission. Legally, it is not even necessary to get the owner’s permission. However, it is a very good idea to negotiate with the freeholder about your plans and get them to support them. There is little point going through the process of gaining planning permission if they are going to object later on.
You may not be carrying out any building work at all but you may still need to get planning permission – eg a change of use may also need permission before you start. It is important to be realistic about any proposed change of use and get advice before you get too far into the process. For example, if you are looking to make a disused hall into a gym in the middle of a residential area, car parking issues may mean that planning permission is highly unlikely to be granted.
To help you through the planning process the appointment of an architect or surveyor is recommended.
Planning permission is granted through the local authority planning department. See the LINKS page for more information.
Although the planning law and the local authority’s own planning policy will decide whether or not planning permission is granted, it will still be useful for you to be able to demonstrate at this stage that your ideas have the support of local stakeholders – including local authority officers involved in the development of sports services and, where relevant, local people.
It is advisable to set up a preliminary meeting with the planning department to talk through your proposal. This should let you know whether you are likely to be successful or not and can thus save a great deal of time and money.
Getting through the planning process
The key to getting through planning with the minimum of difficulty is to do the preparation properly which, in the vast majority of cases, means appointing professional help. An architect will be able to draw up the required plans and will know the local planning authority and be able to advise whether a particular plan is likely to meet with their approval or not.
For particularly complicated cases, it may be worth appointing a planning consultant specifically to see an application through. The Royal Town Planning Institute has lists of recommended consultants. Alternatively, ask your existing architect for contacts or other community organisations which have been through the process.
Carrying out the initial research and drawing up the plans may take between four weeks and three months depending on the scale of the build and the complexity of the project.
Once the application has been prepared properly, the planning department should review it within 8 and 13 weeks and give their answer.