Apply for planning permission

You may need to make a planning application if you want to:

  • build something new
  • make a change to your building such as an extension or a change to its appearance
  • change the use of all or part of your building.

We can provide you with professional advice to discuss if your proposed changes do or don't require planning permission.

Our pre-application service offers advice by planning officers before you apply, offering a range of benefits, including:

  • saving you time and money by identifying proposals not requiring permission, or those with little chance of being approved
  • outlining how our policies will be applied to your proposal
  • providing information to support your application, if one is needed, to allow us to process it faster and give you a decision sooner

General advice on a range of common householder projects is available on the planning portal. You can also check the interactive guide on the planning pPortal to see what may need planning permission.

Things to check

If it is a listed building, you may need to make an application for listed building consent if you wish to alter the building internally or externally.

If it is in a conservation area, additional planning controls apply.

If you don’t get planning permission

If your project needs planning permission and you carry out the work without getting it, you can be served an enforcement notice ordering you to undo all the changes you have made.

It is a criminal offence to carry out works to a listed building without first obtaining consent from the council, even if you did not know that the building was listed.