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Planning Permission


Planning permission involves the asking of the local authority if you are allowed it carry out any building work. It is the owner of the properties responsibility to apply for permission and therefore usually the owner who submits the application. If planning permission is not obtained before work commences it is the owner who is liable and who will have to pay for any reconstruction or restoration costs. Once the application has been submitted, the local authority will evaluate the plans, before granting or refusing permission for the work to be done. However, it is also possible and not uncommon that planning permission is granted with certain conditions that the work must abide by. It is also not uncommon for a condition that applies to one building, also being applied to any similar applications in the vicinity.


Planning permission will be required for any work that involves:

· Constructing an entirely new building on a land plot

· The extension of an existing building

· The change of use of a building


One thing that should be taken into account by anyone who is submitting a planning application is the people who own property in the vicinity. Neighbours can comment on applications while they are being evaluated, leaving their positive, or more commonly negative feedback about the plans. The council will take these comments into account while deciding on the application so it is wise to keep neighbours on good term if you are planning work. Planning applications can be found on the local authority’s webpage and can therefore be used as research when planning your own application.


In relation to my current design project, I researched a number of recent planning applications involving the surrounding buildings to the plot. On one of the application I found a condition involving the mandatory use of sufficient sound insulation as well as proper ventilation. Upon reading the application I found that the sound insulation condition had been put in place due to the large amounts of noise pollution caused by late night establishments in the vicinity. As for the ventilation concerns, this was due to the road outside being heavily used by busses throughout the day, causing poor air quality in the surrounding buildings. There were other applications in the area involving the same condition all of which were for residential planning applications. It was therefore obvious that if my design project involved a residential aspect, it would likely have the same conditions applied to it.

Bibliography

Council, N.B. (2012) View planning applications. Available at: http://www.northampton.gov.uk/info/200206/planning_applications/1164/view_planning_applications (Accessed: 29 January 2017).

Planning permission (2016) Available at: https://www.gov.uk/planning-permission-england-wales/when-you-need-it (Accessed: 29 January 2017).

Portal, P. (2017) Do you need permission? Available at: https://www.planningportal.co.uk/info/200125/do_you_need_permission (Accessed: 29 January 2017).

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