Householder development rights out for consultation
4 Dec 08
Draft order sets out works which will need no planning permission
Householders will be allowed to develop up to 40% of their garden ground without needing planning permission, under a draft order put out for consultation by Scottish ministers.
The order would remove a large number of "minor" domestic extensions and alterations from the need to obtain planning permission. The consultation paper explains that this will "allow individuals more freedom to develop their property and planning authorities to allocate resources to more significant developments, while retaining an appropriate level of planning control".
Research for the former Scottish Executive in 2006 recommended that around 38% of domestic applications, or about 10,000 a year, could be brought under "permitted development rights" that do not require further permission.
Under the proposals, a number of general rules would apply to limit the overall extent of development, subject to any particular restrictions contained for example in previous grants of planning permission, those relating to specially protected sites, environmental impact assessment rules and other exclusions. No rights would attach if the original development was illegal.
The main proposals include:
- increasing the limit on permitted development within the curtilage of a house from 30% to 40% of the curtilage (excluding the original house);
- increasing the proportional limit of the increase in the size of the original house from 10% of the total internal floor area to 50% of the development footprint (the area of ground covered by the original house), subject to a height limit;
- relaxing the restrictions on roof alterations on certain rear and side elevations to allow the construction of dormer extensions or other extensions which enter the roof;
- relaxing certain restrictions on development near roads, to permit development in line with the principal elevation of the house and otherwise if more than five metres from the road;
- introducing new rights covering decking, small porches and alterations to chimneys;
- introducing a single height restriction of four metres for separate development within the curtilage of a dwellinghouse.
To prevent overdevelopment, there would be an absolute limit of 60 square metres on the area of the curtilage of the dwellinghouse which can be developed without permission, a limit of 40% on the area of the rear curtilage (or garden ground) which can be developed, taking any previous extensions into account; and no permitted development within one metre of the property boundary.
For flats, the paper asks whether replacement windows that do not alter the size of the window should be permitted development.
The consultation can be accessed through this link to the Scottish Government website. The closing date for responses is 13 March 2009.