Document
Prior Approval
For development that is already permitted in principle, but where the council still gets a say on specific matters. Larger extensions and office-to-residential conversions are the common ones.
- The tier this usually sits in
- HouseholderThe tier this usually sits in
- Wren, for a case at that tier
- £499Wren, for a case at that tier
- Specimen you can read in full
- PublishedSpecimen you can read in full
- Sections inside it
- 4Sections inside it
What is inside
Section by section.
- 01The permitted development right and Class relied on
- 02Confirmation the scheme falls within that Class's limits and conditions
- 03Each matter the Class reserves, addressed in turn: transport, contamination, flooding, noise, natural light, external appearance
- 04The evidence for each
When it is required
Why a council asks for this.
General Permitted Development Order 2015, Schedule 2. The council may only consider the matters the Class reserves. It is not an application for planning permission and the document does not argue as if it were.
| Required when |
|---|
| A larger home extension beyond the standard permitted development depth |
| Office to residential conversion under Class MA |
| Agricultural to residential conversion under Class Q |
| Other Classes where the Order reserves matters for approval |
Why it exists
Documents answer constraints.
A council does not ask for this because it likes paperwork. It asks because something on or near your site triggers it, and the appraisal will tell you whether yours is triggered before you pay for anything.
Asked and answered
About the Prior Approval.
How is prior approval different from planning permission?
Often alongside
Documents that usually travel with it.
The main written case for a planning application. It describes the site and the proposal, then argues the scheme against the policies your council will actually decide it under.
Identifies the heritage assets a scheme affects, explains what makes each of them significant, and assesses honestly what your proposal would do to that significance.
Proves that something you have built, or intend to build, is lawful and needs no planning permission. It is a certificate of fact, not a judgement of merit.
Submitted after permission is granted, to satisfy the conditions attached to it. Most permissions cannot be built out until these are cleared.
Find out whether your site needs one.
The appraisal names the route, lists the documents that route requires, and prices the set before you commit to anything.