CONSERVATION PLANNING

If you are considering alterations, I can help you find out whether there are additional planning restrictions that you need to consider; for example statutory listing; location within a Conservation Area etc.

I can provide general planning advice and will work with you to develop a design that both suits your requirements and stands the best chance of attaining planning permission. For example, where a property is in a conservation area, proposed alterations may need to be sympathetic to the wider surrounding character of the area and adjacent properties.

The same is true where a local planning authority has deemed a building to be of local interest; also known as a “Locally Listed Building”. While this designation doesn’t provide the greater level of statutory legal protection of a listed building, it will be a consideration in any planning application and as such will require consideration when designing a scheme.

There are also numerous types of building work that can be undertaken without the need to attain formal planning permission. This is known as Permitted Development. While Permitted Development places limits on the size and scale of the various items of work, sometimes designing a scheme within these restrictions can help speed the process of your development.

While Permitted Development rights cover older, non-listed, buildings within Conservation Areas, they can be limited and/or afected by other planning restrictions; removed as part of an existing planning conditions; and are generally removed where a property is statutorily listed. It is therefore important to consider them in a wider planning context. I will be able to advise you on whether Permitted Development applies to your property and what may be achievable.

Preparation of a planning application can also necessitate the involvement of other external consultants; for example to undertake a bat survey. Where this is the case I can help arrange and coordinate the necessary additional consultant input.

I always endeavor to deliver a positive planning result for my clients however the outcome of an application is not always certain. Where a scheme is refused and if it is appropriate to do so, I can prepare and submit a planning appeal or revise a scheme for re-submission of a planning application.

Conversely a local planning authority may approve a scheme conditionally. Sometimes such approvals contain pre-commencement conditions, which require a further formal application and approval before building work can begin.

I am able to advise you on these conditions and can prepare and submit the application to discharge the conditions on your behalf. If you have an existing conditional permission, I can also assist you in clearing these to enable you to proceed with the approved works.

Sometimes planning conditions require separate third party consultants, for example an archaeological recording condition. I can organise this on your behalf and, if necessary, coordinate its submission with any other conditions, to ensure the process is as time and cost efficient as possible.