We have created dedicated websites for various areas of our business. These are designed to give more infomation to the services offered by MJF CAD Solutions.
The new websites are as follows…
For Planning Permission and Building Regulation plans please visit:
http://www.ukplanningpermission.co.uk
For Measured Building Surveys please visit:
http://www.measuredbuildingsurveys.co.uk
For Floor Plans please visit:
http://www.floorplansuk.co.uk
So you have decided to have an extension on the rear of your property and you have had some quotes in to have the plans drawn up to apply for planning permission and building regulations. But have you been advised on all costs involved?
Firstly, have you been told how much the local authority charges to apply for planning permission? For household development this is currently £150 (March 2010) but you may not even need planning permission. My previous post explained if you do need planning permission and how to work out if you do or not. If your plans fall within the permitted development, then you may not need permission, thus saving you £150 and the cost of the plans!
However, as explained before, you may need to prove you didn’t need planning permission such as when you sell your home. This is when a certificate of lawfulness comes in to play.
OK, so you have decided weather or not to have planning permission and now you need building regulations approval. There are two types of building regulations applications you can submit; a building notice or a full plans submission.
With a building notice you just submit an application form, the fee and normally a site location plan and within about a week you can start work. These are great for simple projects and good if you need to start work ASAP. If your builder is happy to work without construction plans then this can save you hundreds by not having plans drawn up. There are conditions though. Your new development must not be within 3m of a public sewer. If this is the case then you will need a full plans application and there will be a fee payable to your local water company of around £350 for them to inspect the drains. This is known as a build-over.
If your development falls over 3m away from a public sewer, you can still apply for a full plans application, and this is normally prefered by builders.
With a full plans application you need to submit the application form and a set of construction plans that specify all the material that will be used for the project. You can also split the fee. You pay part of the cost to the local authority to check the plans and then once the plans have been approved (usally in around 5 weeks) you pay the balance once work starts.
The way building control fees are structured, for an extension in this case, is based on the internal size of the development. The fee range is..
up to 10m sqr.
between 10m sqr. and 40m sqr.
between 40m sqr. and 60m sqr.
between 60m sqr. and 80m sqr.
over 80m sqr.
The fee gets higher the larger the development. If money is tight and you are just over one of the ranges, and its possible, it may be worth reducing the size of your extension so you fall in to a lower price bracket. Not always possible I know.
One other cost you may need to bear in mind is structural engineer calculation costs. Just because someone can draw plans, it doesn’t make them a structural engineer. If you need to have steels put in to support load bearing walls then calculations may also be required.
So, when obtaining quotes for plans, make sure all the costs are explained including…
Planning Fee
Building Regulations Fee
Structual Calculations Fee
Build-over Fee
For more information on this or if you would like us to quote for plans, please visit our main website at www.mjfcadsolutions.co.uk or www.ukplanningpermission.co.uk.
Do I need Planning Permission
This is probably one of the most common questions I get asked from householders - “Do I need planning permission for an extension?”.
Well, it depends on many things. I have attempted to outline these below..
First of all, is the property on designated land. By this I mean conservation areas, national parks and the Broads, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and World Heritage Sites. If it is then you are probably most likely to require planning permission. The same applies for a listed property.
Next I would need to know if any development rights have been removed from the property. All houses are built with permitted development rights unless the developer decides to remove some of these when the property is built. A quick call to your local planning department should give you the answer.
Planning will also be required if….
The new extension is to be built to the front or the side of the property, and either the front or side face a highway. A porch is slightly different, but I’ll get onto them later.
It is a side extension two storey or more.
Its a side extension and the height is more than 4 metres.
Its a side extension and the width of the extension is more than half the width of the existing house.
The new extension (and any existing extensions) will take up more than half the land around the original house. By original I mean the house as it was originally built, without any extensions.
Any new extensions to be higher then the highest part of the roof of the house.
Depth of a single storey rear extension is more than 3 metres on an attached house or more than 4 metres on a detached house.
Depth of a two storey rear extension is more than 3 metres.
The height of a single storey rear extension is more than 4 metres.
Any extension within 2 metres of a boundary exceeds an eves height of 3 metres.
Any extension is closer then 7 metres of the rear boundary.
The roof pitch of a two storey or more extension doesn’t match the existing house.
The extension includes a veranda, balcony or raised platform.
Any side facing glazing on the 2nd story to be clear glass.
You plan to use materials that don’t match the existing property.
What about conservatories?
People automatically think conservatories don’t need planning – well think again. A conservatory falls under the same rules as an extension.
What about a porch?
Again, you will need to check if any permitted development rights have been removed first but as long as the following are true, you don’t need planning permission for a porch…
The external area of the porch does not exceed 3 square metres
The highest part of the porch does not exceed 3 metres.
Any part of the porch is over 2 metres away from the boundary facing a highway.
So how do I prove I don’t need Planning Permission?
In the good old day, you could simply write to your local authority and ask them “Do I need Planning Permission?”, and they would write back you with a yes or no.
This service is now no longer available and local authorities are no longer able to make decisions like this. This all came about by the Mortgage Lenders revised guidelines for Solicitors. These new guidelines stated that any development should have written confirmation that Planning Permission, if needed, was obtained or if Planning was not required, that this also should be confirmed.
The way to confirm that planning permission is not required is by means of a certificate of lawfulness. The process to apply for a certificate follows the same procedure for planning permission approval except it is not advertised and neighbours are not consulted.
If you are in the process of moving house and you have a development that doesn’t have planning permission or a certificate of lawfulness then this can be applied for retrospectively, although there is no guarantee this will be approved.
MJF CAD Solutions can assist you in obtaining planning permission or a certificate of lawfulness. Feel free to contact us for any further help.
Finally MJF CAD Solutions has started to blog about, well, just about anything. Check back for more soon…