If you have been thinking about adding a conservatory to your home, you may be wondering how you might go about getting planning permission, as well as whether the law may be about to change now a new government is in place.
Concerning the first question, the present law is actually quite favourable – with certain caveats. The rules on building a conservatory are the same as they would be for other extensions, the sort of thing you would do to add another bedroom or extend your kitchen.
Permitted Development Rights
These rules are governed by what is known as ‘permitted development rights’. They allow homeowners to extend their properties by a certain size and within certain limits without requiring any planning permission at all. It is if it exceeds these boundaries a planning application may be needed.
For example, under permitted development rights, the extension can only cover up to half the land around the original house, so you cannot just build a huge conservatory that covers most of your back garden. Nor can it be taller than the existing structure, and cannot be over three metres tall where it comes within two metres of the property boundary.
Perhaps most relevantly for a conservatory, the materials used in exterior work must look like those of the existing house. This can be an issue if your new conservatory is going to create a markedly different appearance.
Of course, if you do have to apply for planning permission, you may still have reasonable expectations of getting it, although in some cases much will depend on whether any of your neighbours objects. If nobody does – which is a reasonable assumption if you are on good terms with them, as well as if some of them have similar plans, all will be well.
On the other hand, it may be that there are some issues, in which case you might still be able to go ahead once some amendments have been made to deal with these concerns.
Either way, you should speak to your local authority for guidance before starting any work. The one thing you should never set out to do is build something first and then have to seek retrospective planning permission for it, with the risk that if it is refused, you will have to pull it down, wasting time, effort and money.
Listings, Conservation Areas And National Parks
Another consideration that may apply is if the home you live in or the area where you live has a special status. If you live in a listed building you should certainly seek advice and secure planning permission before you do any work, as not to do so would be a criminal offence.
The level at which a building is listed can also make a difference. Grade I, for instance, is the rarest but most exceptional. This is unlikely to apply to your house just because these are exceptional, whereas Grade II* and II are more common.
As well as listed buildings, the areas people live in can be subject to some constraints. You may live in a conservation area where there is little you can do to change the appearance of the building, although you may be helped by the fact that the conservatory will usually be at the back of the house rather than facing out onto the street, making it much less visible.
Being located in a national park is another factor, as planning rules are very strict here and the national park authority will often have very strict rules in place. That said, it may make a difference if you are in the middle of a town in a national park, rather than a standalone house in a scenic location.
Could The Law Change Soon?
These are all existing rules, but of course, there is always the chance that any new government may seek to change them.
After winning the election with a huge majority, the new Labour government should have little problem getting planning reforms through parliament, not least as its MPs will have fewer qualms about loosening planning laws in ways that Conservative MPs in ten shires would oppose due to the strength of local feeling.
The greenbelt is one area of potential controversy and as she pledged to “Get Britain building,” chancellor Rachel Reeves has talked about reclassifying some low-grade land currently designated this way as ‘grey belt’.
However, what this means is that the government’s priority will be to focus on building more homes to start with, rather than encouraging existing homeowners to add extensions more easily. If the new policy programme leads to more conservatories, it will be because extra new homes get built and some of their owners will add a conservatory in the future.