Making A Domestic Planning Application
In order to make a planning application to your Local Authority you will need to have the necessary drawings and documents prepared for the submission. These will need to include elevations and floor plans as well as site and location plans. Generally the Local Authority is concerned with the use and appearance of the development as well as it's impact on the immediate area (or wider if you live in a Conservation Area).
Many domestic applications are made to extend to an existing building in order to create increased space within a house. This form of planning application would normally be made for full permission. It is important to consider the overall design such an extension as this will be key to the success of the application - not to mention the overall effect of the completed project on the house.
Planning
Applications
You will need to decide which type of application you want to submit. It is possible to make either an outline application or an application for full permission. The requirements in each case are similar and detailed information will be required concerning the proposal, such as the nature of the proposed development, it's position, size and appearance.
The Council will consider things that may not at first appear to be obvious such as the impact on parking on the street and the capacity of the sewage system. For a small domestic extension the impact may be negligible but if you wish to add extra bedrooms, bathrooms etc this implies that more people will (or could) live in the house. This in turn means that there may be a requirement for additional parking and so on.
What is Planning Permission all about?
- Development
- The planning process is designed to give people control (through their elected representatives) of developments within their area. Ultimately decisions are made by the Planning Committee of the Local Authority which is made up of Councillors. Of course there are rules on how they make their decisions and in practice almost every element of the process is governed by statute. In fact there are very few instances today where planning permission is not needed to undertake development, therefore it is essential to understand what constitutes 'development' for the purposes of the Planning Acts.
- Definition
-
The Town & Country Planning Act 1990 defines development as ........
'the carrying out of building, engineering, mining or other operations in, on, over or under land, or the making of any material change in the use of any buildings or other land'