Tips on building an extension: Planning Permission

Conception

Architecture

Planning Permission

Building Control

Getting a Quote

Bathroom

Bedroom

Gallery

The first major hurdle for any building project is to gain planning permission. This requires a submission of the plans to the local council planning department. Most of them have a website explaining the procedures to follow including the latest fees and the forms you have to fill in. Many people leave it to someone else such as their architect to submit plans for them. Since I was doing it on my own I had to figure out the process for myself.

I had already drawn up plans at the design stage. I found a copying service that could photocopy A1 drawings so that I could submit the five copies that they needed. Plans for planning permission do not need to be very detailed. In my case I needed the following plans:
- Before and after floor and roof plans,
- Before and after elevations from front, back and side
- Roof plans
- Block plan
- location plan
I drew all of them except the location plan on the A1 sheet to scale 1:100. The location plans were purchased from the ordinace survey, but I think I could have got away with drawing some myself.

Hot Tip:Have a look round the local council websites. They have all the information you need on how to submit planning permission. Many of them have an archive of scanned images from submitted plans. This provides excellent examples of what is required.

When we submitted the plans we worried that it might be rejected for some reason such as
- They might say it made the house too big
- Neighbours might object to it blocking the light

Neither of these things happened to us. Our neighbours were concerned about loss of light but accepted that there was not a problem. The extension would be 3 meters from their boundary and I had designed the roof profile with hip ends rather than gable ends to minimise light blocking. If you are building an extension and your neighbours do object on these grounds these are some of the things to know:
- There are national laws which grant people a "right to light" that they can use if you block their light with an extension or wall.
- An objection from a neighbour to your request for planning permission may be taken into account by the council, but if the council grants planning permission anyway, it does not mean they did not have a case. They can still take you to court even after it is built.
- They only have a right to light through their windows if the windows have been there for at least 20 years.
- Although each case is taken on its own merits, there is a general rule of thumb that can be used to decide if they are likely to have a case. Take a line from the bottom of their window at 45 degrees upwards and towards the blocking construction. If it blocks the line then you could be in trouble.
- Other factors need to be taken into account such as their use of the illuminated area.

Hot Tip:A serious case of "right to light" is a cash cow for lawyers. If there is a possibility of it arising, talk to your neighbours before you submit for planning permission.

When the plans are submitted to the council, they send notifications to your neighbours who have time to go an view the plans at the council offices. Any objections (or supporting comments!) are taken into account along with the councils own planning rules. These are some of the common things that may csupper your plans
- An extension out at the front of the house is likely to spoil the look from the road.
- If you are on a road corner an extension could block the view for traffic.
- Your design may just not look good.
- You need to have enough parking space in relation to the number of bedrooms.

If your house is listed, expect special problems.