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What are the planning and building rules for constructing a soakaway?
A soakaway does not normally require an application for planning permission provided it deals with surface water and does not discharge into a public sewer. Additional regulations may apply if you are in a conservation area or within the boundary of a listed building.
Building regulations will apply to the creation of a soakaway. The soakaway must comply with Part H of the building regulations which specifies where they can be located and the size that is permitted.
Read more about Approved Document H.
Common Questions
Adding an internal wall will not require planning permission or building control approval in most cases. If the building is listed, then you may require listed building consent to make a major alteration to the house.
Any work completed should adhere to building regulations, ensuring fire routes, electrics and ventilation are considered.
Rendering or cladding the exterior walls of your house may fall under permitted development rights, meaning an application for planning permission is not required provided you meet certain limits and requirements set out in legislation.
If you live in a listed building, you will need listed building consent for any significant works whether internal or external.
If you live in a Conservation Area, a National Park, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty or the Broads, you will need to apply for planning permission before cladding the outside of your house with stone, artificial stone, pebble dash, render, timber, plastic or tiles.
Outside these areas, cladding may be carried out without having to first apply for planning permission provided the materials are of a similar appearance to those used in the construction of the house.
If the new materials will not have a similar appearance to those previously used you will be required to submit an application for planning permission.
Read more about change to external walls on our common project.
When you, or an agent acting on your behalf, have submitted a planning application, the local authority will firstly check the application to check if it’s complete. This validation process allows the authority to ensure everything that is required to decide an application has been received and provided correctly. They will contact you if they require any further information from you.
After the application has been validated, the determination process begins and takes up to 8 weeks for smaller applications, or up to 13 weeks for larger applications. The authority should be able to give you an idea about the likely timetable. The local authority will contact you with their decision.
Read more about the decision-making process for planning applications.
Yes, but this type of conversion will require full planning permission. This is because you’d be changing the use of the ground floor from residential to commercial (typically to a use class such as E), while the upper floor would remain as a residential flat (Class C3). The change of use triggers the need for planning approval.
Find out more about change of use
Yes, in most cases you can use an outbuilding as a home office without needing planning permission. As long as the use remains incidental to the main dwelling it is still considered part of your domestic residential use.
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