Ian Walmsley

Hi, This isn't as straightforward as it might at first seem. A shop (and post office) are Use Class E. Normally I would advise using Class MA to convert to residential under a 56 day prior approval. However this would give you a new separate dwelling and need to meet minimum space standards and natural light to all habitable rooms. As you wish to undertake conversion of it to C3 to merge with the existing home, this would need full planning. I would most certainly appeal as property has clearly been closed for a period of time. You have nothing to lose. This might be where a planning consultant would be useful as the case can be argued with the local authority with evidence as required. In case you do need to resubmit, put together evidence of when it was closed and if possible details as to how the previous business was struggling etc. Not sure if it closed before you purchased or if you purchased as a going concern and then decided to close the store. Please contact us if you would like our assistance with an appeal and/or a new application.

@Rachel Jones thanks for the message. Actually I think you ought to be able to use Class G of Part 3 to create the flat above. This allows for one or two flats above Use Class E. As long as you meet minimum space standards of 37 sq m (1 bed, 1 person) and can have natural light to the bedroom and lounge area you should be okay. If you need any assistance with this 56 day prior approval, please request a fee proposal from us.

@Alice Prin as a general rule you should be fine. Each permitted development right operates individually. Demolition in part 6 does not cover parts of a building as this would normally be considered alteration. Therefore I would say that Class G allows for removal as this would be an alteration. There have also been various appeals that have confirmed the same. As a result unless Class G has been removed either via an Article 4 or a previous planning decision you should be good to go.

Hard to be sure without knowing the site, but if you have removed the static part you might be okay. If you have complied with the enforcement, then they will not take any further action unless they inform you first. Providing you replied to the original email. More on enforcement at this link.

Solar Panels are covered under Class A of Part 14. However you would not be able to install these during the build as any of permitted development rights do not exist until the property is substantially complete.

In an Article 4 area that blocks Class L rights to go from C3 to C4 it will require a full planning application. Parking will be a consideration as will amenity space, bike and bin stores etc. However the more important check is where other HMOs are locally - so it will be far harder if there is an HMO next door as opposed to 5 streets away. Larger Sui Generis HMOs will require planning permission irrespective of any Article 4. Please contact us if you need further assistance or complete our fee proposal form if you would like a price for planning.

Hi, This should be covered under Use Class E, whereas fish and chip shops, pizza shops, (fried) chicken shops, Chinese, Indian takeaways, Kebab shops etc would be Sui Generis as Hot Food Takeaway. Therefore no planning or change of use would be required.

Hi, Apart from generic permitted development rights for say fences, a scout hut doesn't have any. BTW - this is likely to be Use Class F2 and not sui generis as a local meeting hall Is this for a conversion, extension etc? What are you looking to do? I suspect that you will require planning permission.

When you say 'the planner' do you mean the local authority? It is never wise to ask them for advice. I am aware of several that have been converted to HMOs from a Class G conversion. The problem is that, I feel that it is being read incorrectly. I will aim to reply further tomorrow. Apologies.

I would agree with not contacting the local authority unless you have to! What you will not be able to do is to construct outside of the barn envelope. Did you obtain separate planning for the solar panels?

We have received the form that you filled in. It is with one of our consultants and they will be in touch shortly. We will have a look at the best option for you once we have investigated the site etc.

I always recommend a decent pre-app. Far better to tell the planning officer what you want and why you should get planning rather than asking him/her to create a scheme for you. If you need any further assistance with this please let us know.

Any £96 fee is now £120 You do not need to apply for the permitted development rights. You can just go ahead as long as you are compliant with Part 1 for dwellings. However if you wanted a certificate of lawfulness, that is now £258 to confirm that something that was erected or changed was compliant. If it is a proposed use or development that is £129 See https://www.planninggeek.co.uk/planning/fees/

Did you apply for the entire building? Class MA only applies to Use Class E. Therefore you need to apply for the recording studio. If you need any further assistance with this, please contact us. We have planning consultants who can assist.

Yes, you are going to require planning permission for this. Please contact us if you would like any assistance with this application.

If the barn hasn't been used solely for agriculture that might disqualify the barn. Without knowing the setting it is hard to say, whether the wind turbine would affect the dwelling. Personally I would not have withdrawn and allowed the process to establish the facts. If you would like any assistance, please let us know via this form.

The government has today released the latest National Planning Policy Framework. You can download a copy from here. I will write up my thoughts in due course. Others are welcome to post their initial thoughts.

Hi, It would be the last legal use. Often it is agricultural, unless planning is in place to change the use. Have a look on the local authority website to see if there is any planning. Should be able to find this within the Planning section. The flood risk will make matters rather difficult (sorry missed that in the original post). The issue with barns is that there is usually not an upstairs for people to seek refuge.

If the land is equestrian, then the barn would not qualify at this time. If the land never had permission to be equestrian, then it might stil be agricultural. The issue however is that even if it was, I suspect that the barn has been used for non agricultural purposes and therefore that also rules it out for now. I have said for now above, as we may see a change in legislation that could well bring the barn into contention. This news item details my thoughts on what might happen. As for timescale, I now think it could be spring time. Unless you have other uses for the land, I wouldn't buy now. However you could start the process to purchase but delay it until we know what is happening. What I wouldn't advise is telling the agent or the vendor about any potential changes. If and when the time comes, we would be happy to assist you with the application.

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I intend to ramp up the number of news items on the main site. You are now able to comment on these items. https://www.planninggeek.co.uk/topics/news/

Following a couple of months testing, I am now ready to open the forums to everyone! The Facebook Group will remain, but not everyone is on Facebook! You can join the forums and indeed the site for free. Please note that your first couple of posts/replies will be subject to moderation. Then you will automatically become a full member. This is to prevent any spammers automatically posting. We also have a couple of paid tiers. Anonymous Posts Whilst we do not encourage anonymous posts, we do appreciate that some people may wish to login and post anonymously. This option will cost £5 per month. This nominal cost covers the additional work involved behind the scenes to ensure that the option is not abused by spammers. You can always return to the free tier at any time or upgrade to the Premium Members. Gold Members Whilst this does cost £25 per month I will be offering potential savings from insurance, software, finance and much more which will far exceed the £25 per month. This will be rolled out over the next week or three. Don't worry you can always upgrade at any time. You will also get 10% of any Planning Geek Courses - this alone will save you more than a month's fee. Gold members will also have their own dedicated forum with premium support. You can sign up for the site here. By default when you join your display name is set to 'FirstName Surname' - you may update this to have a custom display name by going to this page. Please note that this might not be reflected immediately on the forums. Please allow up to a couple of hours. If you alter your display name or if we upgrade your account, please either wait patiently for an hour or two or to force the change straight away - log out and back in. This may also apply if you alter your membership level. Despite extensive testing, there are always the odd bug or two that slips through - so any issues please let me know. Much more is planned, so watch this space!

This is still Use Class E if it is a café that serves alcohol in addition to the food etc. Unfortunately whoever said that you required planning was incorrect. The hours are only limited if you use the planning permission granted. However I have to agree that the Licencing folks may limit you now if they see the planning permission. The only reason why it might have needed planning is if it was actually use class F2 as a local shop with nothing similar within 1km

You do not need planning to go from a shop to a café as both are Use Class E, unless there was originally a restriction on the planning for the shop. There wouldn't be any conditions then. Licencing is separate and may restrict hours etc. for alcohol.

Submitted and paid for. However it should be a valid application. Therefore if it meets the validation requirements it should be fine. I guess it depends whether the drawings requested are on the validation list. If not, then I would push back.