Architect Julian Owen shares his top tips for ensuring your self build gets planning approval

Build It readers Sue and Antony Beckley’s self build plans sailed through planning, thanks to Rob from RX Architects (www. rxarchitects.com), who had previous experience with the local council and knew exactly how to get this contemporary design accepted

KATY DONALDSON

The UK planning system was set up in the 1940s to ensure that the designs for all new buildings would be vetted in an objective way and would be compatible with the interests of the communityAt least, that was the theory. The reality is that planning decisions are subject to a range of pressures, some of which are indeed the result of a democratic process that is recorded in national and local planning documents. But others are influenced by the views of residents, senior planning officials and councillors. Should you feel unfairly treated you can appeal but this takes time and money, and may ultimately be unsuccessful. There’s no guarantee that your proposed project will get permission, but there is plenty that you can do to give it the best possible chance.

Preliminary steps

Before drawing work starts there is homework to be done, starting with looking at planning policy on three levels: the National Planning Policy Framework, the council’s Local Plan and, if one exists, the Neighbourhood Plan. Then look on the web at similar applications submitted in the vicinity.

Once a design reaches the initial sketch stage you can submit a pre-application enquiry to the council to get the heads up as to which aspects of the scheme might encounter objections. If your designer is worth their salt, they will have a good understanding of how the local planning department operates, especially the personal views of the movers and shakers and how often the councillors overrule their officers’ recommendations. The objective is to find out the key issues that will determine how well your design will be received, identify anything that might be controversial and then present your scheme in a way that there are no reasons to refuse it.