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by Martin Stuart

Paragraph 55/79 Statistics

May 17, 2019by Martin StuartUncategorized

An interesting article on the RIBA’s member’s update email this week: they’ve attempted to get hold of some statistics on Paragraph 55/79 applications across the UK.

Para 55/79 is a favourite ‘loophole’ beloved of self-builders who want to gain Planning Permission for single dwellings in open countryside, but for those who are unfamiliar with it, it basically says that an exception to the usual Planning rules can be made for dwellings of exceptional architectural quality or technical innovation, which enhance their setting.

We always used to advise people that Para 55/79 was not an easy option by any means – that it was likely to be a costly approach, and that success was far from guaranteed. The trouble was, nobody actually had any figures to substantiate this.

The figures the RIBA have now quoted are not reliable (many Authorities didn’t respond to their request for information, and even on those that did, I’ve already spotted at least two Para 55/79 applications that I know about personally that haven’t been recorded), but they are at least better than nothing. They’re saying that of the 2/3rds of LPA’s that responded, they have recorded 115 applications (over 6 years). Crudely extrapolated for the 1/3rd of LPA’s that didn’t respond, that might take the figures to ~173 applications over England as a whole (representing an average of about 29 per year).

Of the 109 recorded applications, 66 were approved, 43 refused, and 6 were withdrawn.

That represent a surprisingly high approval rate of 57%. For reference, this compares to a general approval rate for minor residential applications of around 73%.

So while it still certainly shouldn’t be viewed as an easy option, and the overall figures for such approvals are very low (about a quarter of a percent of even just the self-build market), the percentage success rates for planning approvals are actually quite encouraging.

TL:DR version: Paragraph 55/79 permission may not be as difficult to gain approval for as we thought it was…

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by Martin Stuart

Permitted Development for Larger Extensions made permanent

May 8, 2019by Martin StuartUncategorized

Good news for homeowners is that the temporary allowance for larger ground floor extensions as ‘Permitted Development’, which was due to expire at the end of May 2019 has now been made permanent.

‘Normal’ permitted development allows single storey rear extensions of up to 4 metres for a detached house or 3 metres for any other house, subject to other rules.

The ‘neighbour consultation’ scheme allows these limits to be increased to 8 metres or 6 metres respectively, but does require an application for ‘prior approval’ to your Local Authority.

If the idea of having to seek permission for something that is ‘permitted development’ seems a bit strange, then perhaps we should explain the way it works: the Local Authority notifies your immediate neighbours of your intention, and if your neighbours don’t object, then you’re automatically allowed to go ahead. If they’re not happy with the proposal, then it’s up to the Local Authority to take a view on whether it is acceptable.

If you need assistance in making that ‘neighbour notification’ application (or advice on any other aspects of Permitted Development), then we’re here to help!

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by Martin Stuart

Time to think again about Sustainability in Planning?

July 31, 2017by Martin StuartPlanningUncategorized

So the Government has just announced that new petrol- or diesel-only cars are to be banned by 2040… just 23 years from now.

Most people are aware that there is a current presumption in favour of sustainable development.

What many don’t realise is that the Planning system’s definition of what is ‘sustainable’ has very little to do with the energy efficiency or carbon footprint of the buildings themselves – it’s now been acknowledged that this is for Building Regulations to set the standards.

In Planning terms, sustainability is mainly about the location of the building – whether there are enough local facilities and transport infrastructure to support the users of the buildings so that they don’t have to drive miles in their polluting, fossil-fuel burning cars to get to work, shops, schools or healthcare facilities.

Because of this policy definition, we’re frequently being told that we can’t build homes in smaller settlements because they don’t have the local facilities to make them ‘sustainable’. This forces all new development toward larger settlements – not only meaning that other environmental impacts and traffic congestion are concentrated still further, but causing many rural communities to wither on the vine. Lack of new development means a vicious circle of negative growth, causing local businesses, schools and healthcare services to fail, making the settlement even less ‘sustainable’.

It seems that in just one generation from now, the focus on sustainability of location may be turned on its head: provided the push toward renewable generation of electricity is successful, our personal transport will be non-polluting and therefore the need to drive to our places of work, shops or social infrastructure becomes much less critical.

Is it time for a fundamental overhaul of Planning policy to encourage more diverse and distributed growth that will help reinvigorate our rural communities and ease housing supply across the whole country?

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