Lawful Development Certificates
What is a lawful development certificate?
A Lawful Development Certificate is confirmation that an existing or proposed use of buildings or other land, or operational development to be carried out in, on, over or under land, would be lawful for planning purposes (i.e. permitted development under Government legislation, therefore would not require planning permission).
What does permitted development legislation allow?
You can carry out certain types of work to houses without needing to apply for planning permission (e.g. extensions, porches, rooflights etc). These are 'permitted development rights'. Other work, particularly non-domestic development, is likely to require permission.
For further information on this please use our ‘Do I need planning permission?’ function and review the relevant permitted development legislation and guides:
The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015
Permitted development rights for householders: technical guidance
Interactive Planning Portal
If the works you are proposing exceed the permitted development rights, if there are any restrictive conditions on the original planning permission for your property or if there are any Article 4 directions in your location, you would require planning permission.
Why would I need a Lawful Development Certificate?
A Lawful Development Certificate provides a legal assurance that your development complies with permitted development legislation – this is very useful documentation to have when selling your property and protects from planning enforcement action. It is not, however, compulsory.
What do I need to provide?
Please see below links for the requirements for existing or proposed developments. Either type must be accompanied by sufficient factual information/evidence for the Council to assess the application, along with the relevant fee:
Requirements for a existing lawful development certificate application
Requirements for a proposed lawful development certificate application
General note for all applications:
- A scale bar must be included on all drawings. Plans marked “not to scale” or “do not scale” will not be registered.
- All drawings must be to a recognised metric scale.
- Location plans and block plans to include a north arrow.
- Key dimensions should be annotated on the relevant plans and drawings. For householder applications the key dimensions are the external width, height and depth of the proposed works.
How do I apply?
Applications can be submitted through the Planning Portal.
Alternatively, you can download the form from Planning Portal and pay for your application online. Send your completed form, payment receipt and supporting information / plans to business.support@gloucester.gov.uk.