Planning or building control?

Very often people are confused by the need to obtain approval from the council for their building work.

Building Control and Planning are two distinct types of service which can affect the construction and appearance of buildings. For the majority of proposed building works two separate applications are necessary because you will require both building regulations and planning consent.

Find out if you need planning permission or building regulation consent by filling in the Householder enquiry form.

Planning

Planning permission relates to the siting, design, size, height and bulk of the development and its impact on neighbouring properties and the surrounding area. Applications for planning permission are assessed against national and local planning policies.

Whether planning permission is required or not is defined in complex statutory regulations, although some small-scale development is exempt. The best advice we can give is to contact our development control team who can advise whether planning permission is needed for your proposal.

Building control

Building control relates to the actual construction of the work and uses the current building regulations to ensure, by inspection and approval, that the work is safe, healthy, minimises heat loss and can also have provision for disabled access. Principally the building regulations:

Safeguard the health and safety of people in and around building Conserve energy Provide access and facilities for people with disabilities

The vast majority of building works requires building regulation approval with only a small amount of minor works and structures being exempt. If you are in any doubt whether or not your proposals require approval contact our building control team.

Building regulation approval - is that the same as planning permission?

No - there is a big difference. When you make a planning application, our Development Control team will look carefully at issues like the appearance of the building and the effect it will have on adjoining properties etc. You will not however be asked for practical details about how your building will be constructed - things like the foundations, floors, roof and walls etc. These detailed constructional issues are dealt with under the building regulations for which a completely separate building regulation application is needed.

Do I need to apply separately for planning permission and building regulation consent?

In most cases yes but depending on your particular project you may only need planning permission, only need building regulation consent, need neither or need both. If you are in any way unsure which you need to apply for, please complete a Householder enquiry form, which will guide you through the details you need to provide us with. Once we receive your completed form we will confirm in writing if an application is needed, and if so, what you need to apply for.