Applying for planning permission and prior approvals

If you require planning permission to make alterations or extend your home, then you will need the 'Householder' application form.

Find out what you need to submit and how to apply.

If you need to demolish and/or build a new home you will need the 'Full' application form.

You should also use this application form to make a detailed planning application for development, excluding householder developments. For the purposes of this form, development includes building, engineering or other works, in, on, over or under land, or the making of any material change in the use of any buildings or other land. As such it should be used for:

• any works relating to a flat
• applications to change the number of dwellings (flat conversions, building a separate house in the garden)
• changes of use to part or all of the property to non-residential (including business) uses
• anything outside the garden of the property (including stables if in a separate paddock).

Find out what you need to submit and how to apply.

If you've already determined that your single storey rear extension is classed as a 'permitted development' and does not need planning permission, you can apply for 'prior approval' from us to build it.

This is so we can inform your neighbours who you share a boundary with and allow them to object to your plans if they oppose them.

What you need to submit

Take a look at the information you will need before submitting your application:

Sizes and description

A written description of the proposed development including:

• how far the planned extension extends beyond the rear wall of the original house (the original house is as it was first built, without any extension)
• the maximum height of the planned extension
• the height of the eaves of the planned extension

Three plan drawings

These should be as follows:

• a site plan at a scale of 1:1250 showing the dwelling and its curtilage with adjoining properties (any property sharing a boundary with your house)
  

  Example plan showing adjoining properties (pdf 110kb)

• a block plan (with a scale bar) to a scale of 1:100 or 1:200 indicating the proposed extension in relation to the existing (and if different, the original) dwellinghouse and the relationship to boundaries
• external elevations of the proposed extension to a scale of 1:50 or 1:100
  

  Example plan showing external elevations (pdf 56kb)

Addresses and contact details

These will include:

• the address(es) of any adjoining premises
• your contact details
• your email address

Cost

The cost for this service is £96. In certain circumstances you may be eligible for a fee exemption, meaning you don't have to pay, due to a disability or due to a planning application you've already submitted for the project.

Fee exemption - disability

You will not have to pay the £96 fee if the prior approval application is solely for the alteration or extension of an existing dwelling for the purpose of:

• providing means of access to or within a dwelling for a disabled person, or
• providing facilities designed to secure a disabled person's greater safety, health or comfort

The disabled person must be resident in the dwelling or be proposing to take up residence in it.

You will be required to upload evidence to support the fee exemption.

Fee exemption - already submitted a planning application

You will not have to pay the £96 fee if you have already submitted a planning application and paid a fee. This prior approval application and the planning permission application must be:

• for the same site, buildings or land, and
• made by the same applicant, and
• made on the same date

What happens next

The council will write to your immediate neighbours whose addresses were listed in the application form, inform them that you have submitted a planning application and signpost them to the Public Access website where they can view the application or make a comment. Following this consultation, if:

• no objections are made within 21* days, we will inform you that the development can proceed
• objections are received within 21* days, we will consider your proposals and inform you whether your development can go ahead
• you do not receive any notification within 42 days of the date your application was classed as 'valid', the development can go ahead
• we refuse to allow the development, you can submit an appeal.

Please note: *21 days is the standard consultation period. However, if this period includes bank holidays, the consultation period will be extended by the number of bank holidays.

Apply for prior approval

Apply for prior approval to build your single storey rear extension

If you've already determined that your additional storey(s) is classed as 'permitted development', you need to apply for 'prior approval' from the council before you start any building.

What you need to submit

There is no standard form that you need to submit, however you must provide all of the following information:

1. A written description of the proposed development, including details of any works proposed. This should include relevant information such as:
   • the number of storeys that you intend to construct
   • any structural or supporting works, or works to footings and foundations, that will be required as part of the development
   • details of the materials you are going to use.
2. A site plan showing the proposed development, which must:
   • be drawn to an identified scale
   • show the direction of North.
3. Elevation drawings, which must:
   • be drawn to an identified scale (1:50 or 1:100)
   • show existing and proposed elevations of the house
   • show positions and dimensions of proposed windows.
4. Report for the management of the construction of development which includes:
   • hours of operation during the construction phase
   • how any adverse impacts of noise, dust, vibration and traffic on adjoining owners and occupiers will be mitigated.
5. Address and contact details, including your email address.

Cost

The cost for this service is £96. In certain circumstances you may be eligible for a fee exemption, meaning you don't have to pay, due to a disability or due to a planning application you've already submitted for the project.

Fee exemption - disability

You will not have to pay the £96 fee if the prior approval application is solely for the alteration or extension of an existing dwelling for the purpose of:

• providing means of access to or within a dwelling for a disabled person, or
• providing facilities designed to secure a disabled person's greater safety, health or comfort.

The disabled person must be resident in the dwelling or be proposing to take up residence in it.

You will be required to upload evidence to support the fee exemption.

Fee exemption - already submitted a planning application

You will not have to pay the £96 fee if you have already submitted a planning application and paid a fee. This prior approval application and the planning permission application must be:

• for the same site, buildings or land, and
• made by the same applicant, and
• made on the same date.

What happens next?

Consultation

The council will write to your immediate neighbours to inform them about your proposals and signpost them to the Public Access website where they can view the submitted documents or make a comment.

If your home is close to an airfield or other protected area in relation to air traffic and defence, the council will also have to consult with the Civil Aviation Authority and the Secretary of State for Defence.

21 days is the standard consultation period given. However, if this period includes bank holidays, the consultation period will be extended by the number of bank holidays.

Requests for further information

When considering applications for prior approval for additional storeys the council can only consider the following matters:

• Impact on amenity of your neighbours, including overlooking, privacy and loss of light
• External appearance of the house, including the design and architectural features of the principal elevation and any side elevation that fronts the highway
• Air traffic and defence asset impacts (if your home is close to an airfield or other protected area)
• Whether the development would have an impact on a protected view (there are currently no protected views in the East Riding).

In the context of these issues, and in response to any consultation responses received, the council may require further information from you to assist in determining your application. This may include assessments of impact or risks, statements setting out how risks will be mitigated, or further details about the building operations that will be required. You will be notified by the council if this is the case.

Determining your application

The council must take into account any representations received from your neighbours or from air traffic/defence bodies, and must also have regard to the National Planning Policy Framework, so far as it is relevant to one of the matters set out above.

The council will decide whether the proposal is acceptable in respect of each of these issues. If it is, the council will issue prior approval. You will receive a written notification of your prior approval. You can then commence your works in accordance with the details that you have submitted to the council, and any conditions that the council has attached to your prior approval, as set out in your written notification. You must not start works until you have received this notification.

The council can refuse an application where the proposed development does not comply with the permitted development rules or if you have provided insufficient information to enable the council to establish if the proposed development complies. The council may also refuse to grant prior approval if the proposal is considered unacceptable in respect of any of the issues set out above. If this happens you cannot benefit from this permitted development right and you must not start your development.

The council will endeavour to determine your application within 56 days from it being received as valid.

Please note: if you do not receive a response within the timescale this does not mean you have deemed consent. This is not the same as the prior approval for large single storey extensions. You must wait to receive prior approval from the council before you can start.

Apply for prior approval

The Planning Portal also provides access to other application forms that may be required such as listed building consent, works to trees and hedgerow removal, advertisement consent, lawful development certificates, approval to discharge conditions and applications for non-material amendments.

Read more about different types of planning applications on the Planning Portal website.

Find out how to apply and pay for planning permission below.

You must provide a location plan (with a scale bar) based on an up-to-date map at a scale of 1:1000 or 1:1250 or 1:2500, (an Ordnance Survey Base Map is preferred):

• The plan should show named roads (at least two are preferred to identify the location, but if other features are present, eg railway lines or public buildings, then a single road may suffice), and, where they exist, surrounding buildings.

• It should also have on it a clearly marked north point and the scale to which it is drawn.

• The adjacent properties shown should be suitably numbered or named to ensure that the exact location of the application site is clear. You may need to provide an additional plan of a larger area if your house is in a remote location without clearly identifiable nearby features.

• You must draw a red line around the application site to define it. Normally this will be the boundary of your house and garden, but if the house is served by a private drive from the highway then this should be included in the red edge up to the public highway. If your proposed extension is onto land currently in another person's ownership the red line must include all the required land even if it is separately owned (in which case you will need to serve formal notice on the owner and submit Certificate B).

• You must also draw a blue line around any other land you own, eg a paddock or field adjoining or close to the application site.

All planning applications need to have site plans which are edged in red to identify the extent of the planning application site. A site plan must be on an Ordnance Survey base map.

Ordnance Survey Maps can be obtained in person from some East Riding Libraries and Customer Service Centres who offer a face-to-face service, fully assisted by our professional staff. Cash, cheque or card payment options are available and maps can be produced in PDF form or printed to take away with you.

Currently available at Beverley Library, Driffield Centre, Hedon Centre, Haltemprice Library and Customer Services and Pocklington Pocela Centre.

Ordnance Survey location plans

OS maps can also be obtained from the Planning Portal:

Buy Ordnance survey maps on the Planning Portal website

You must submit a site plan (also sometimes described as a block plan) (with a scale bar) at a scale of 1:500, 1:200 or 1:100. The plan must accurately show:

• The direction of North and the scale of the plan.

• The proposed development site;in relation to the existing building, site boundaries and any other existing buildings on the site.

• The position of buildings on land adjoining the site should be included to a degree sufficient to make clear the relationship of the proposed development to the existing neighbouring properties. (This element of the plan may be based on Ordnance Survey information, but should be adjusted to show any significant changes - for example an extension on a neighbouring property that brings it closer to the application site).

• Any public rights of way or water course crossing or adjoining the site.

• The position and crown spread of all trees must be shown on the plan where construction operations1 are within a distance of 15metres from the trunk of a tree. This includes trees within or adjacent to the application site. If you consider that your proposal will not affect any trees within this distance, please indicate this.

• The extent and type of any proposed hard surfacing including parking and access roads where this is part of your proposal.

• Details of existing and any proposed new boundary treatment (with a note of heights) including walls or fencing.

• Planting and landscaping proposals if relevant

• It is helpful to include key dimensions, such as length, width and height of new buildings, heights to main windows and distances between new works and site boundaries, but these should supplement, not replace, an accurately scaled plan.

Where the roof construction is complex a roof plan (with a scale bar) should be included in the plans. This can be at a smaller scale than the floor plans and elevation drawings, but should not normally be less than 1:200:

• Your drawings should clearly show the shape of the proposed roof (identifying changes from its existing shape where appropriate by providing existing and proposed versions)

• They should include details of materials and the location and design of chimneys, vents and any other features consistent with the submitted elevations.

You must submit drawings (with a scale bar) to a scale of 1:50 or 1:100:

• You must show all floors of the proposed development, including attics and basements.

• Where existing buildings or structures are being altered or extended, you may limit the extent of the floor plans to the new work and the immediately adjacent existing accommodation so long as you clearly distinguish between existing and proposed floor plans.

• Your drawings should clearly indicate where existing buildings, parts of buildings, other structures and/or individual walls are to be demolished.

• Please note: if your application is for a 'granny annex', full floor plans must be submitted.

The drawings should be sufficient to illustrate the proposal in detail.

Your elevations should be drawn to a scale of 1:50 or 1:100 (with a scale bar):

• Where alterations to an existing building are proposed, your drawings must show both existing and proposed elevations and must clearly distinguish between the two.

• If your proposal is for a new outbuilding or garage, drawings of all elevations should be provided including any blank elevations.

• You must indicate the proposed building materials (particularly where a mixture of materials is proposed) and detail the style, materials and openings of all windows and doors.

You are advised to check closely that the elevations are consistent with the floor plans before submission.

For house extensions it will normally be unnecessary to provide levels or cross sections, unless the extension is to be built to a different finished floor level or extends out over a significant fall in the existing ground level. Where there is a change in levels of more than 0.5 metres (including where proposals excavate 0.5m as well as any increase) you must provide:

• An illustrative drawing(s) to show both existing and finished levels. These should include details of foundations and eaves and clearly demonstrate that there will be no encroachment onto land outside the application site.

• Plan(s) to demonstrate how the proposed evelopment relates to existing site levels and neighbouring development. This should show existing site levels and finished floor levels (with levels related to an ordnance datum point off site) and also show levels in relation to adjoining land or buildings.

Cross-section(s) through the proposed works may be required where changes in levels will directly affect neighbouring properties and land. The cross-section(s) should be drawn to the same scale as the elevations.

In cases where roof lights are proposed, a cross-section should be provided to illustrate their position in relation to existing or proposed floor levels.

For 'Householder' applications (extensions and home alterations) it should not normally be necessary to provide 'supporting documents', unless any of the special circumstances below apply:

Biodiversity Survey and Report - Item G in validation checklist

This is only likely to be necessary for a householder application if it is known that there are any protected species present on site. This could occur if the extension is to be built over a pond that is used by Great Crested Newts, or if the proposal requires work to a roof that is the home of bats or barn owls.

Flood Risk Assessment - Item H in validation checklist

If the extension is in a Flood Risk area, you should provide a brief Flood Risk assessment as outlined in checklist, but if this is not provided our validation staff will assist you by providing a simple matrix for you to complete to ensure that standing advice from the Environment Agency is followed.

Heritage Statement - Item J in validation checklist

This will only be required for a listed building (and should be the same as that submitted with the application for listed building consent).

Tree Survey and Assessment - Item R in validation checklist

A tree survey will be required if the proposed extension will be within 15 metres of a tree with a diameter of 75mm or above measured at 1.5m above ground level. If the alterations do not require any below ground work (eg if the proposal is only for adding dormer windows) then simply show the tree(s) on the plan and indicate why the tree(s) will not be affected by the work.

The council has prepared the following guide which should be consulted if you believe any do apply:

Validation Checklist August 2021 (pdf 14.9mb)

Use the validation checklist to help you determine whether you have supplied the required information with your application:

Validation Checklist August 2021 (pdf 14.9mb)

Certain types of application need to be accompanied by a design and access statement. Read about which applications require a statement and what information it should include:

Design and access statement (pdf 41kb)

All planning applications need to have site plans which are edged in red to identify the extent of the planning application site. A site plan must be on an Ordnance Survey base map.

Buy Ordnance survey maps on the Planning Portal website

You can also obtain Ordnance Survey Maps by visiting the Beverley Library, where maps suitable for planning and building regulation applications can be produced, adapted and printed. This digital service is fully assisted by our professional library staff and cash or card payment options are available.

Currently available at Beverley Library with more locations coming soon.

Call (01482) 392750 for further information.

Ordnance Survey location plans

A written description of the proposed development including:

• how far the planned extension extends beyond the rear wall of the original house (the original house is as it was first built, without any extension)
• the maximum height of the planned extension
• the height of the eaves of the planned extension

These should be as follows:

• A site plan at a scale of 1:1250 showing the dwelling and its curtilage with adjoining properties (any property sharing a boundary with your house)
  

  Example plan showing adjoining properties (pdf 110kb)

• A block plan to a scale of 1:100 or 1:200 indicating the proposed extension in relation to the existing (and if different, the original) dwellinghouse and the relationship to boundaries
• external elevations of the proposed extension to a scale of 1:50 or 1:100
  

  Example plan showing external elevations (pdf 56kb)

These will include:

• The address(es) of any adjoining premises
• Your contact details
• Your email address

You must provide a written description of the proposed development, including details of any works proposed. This should include relevant information such as:

• the number of storeys that you intend to construct
• any structural or supporting works, or works to footings and foundations, that will be required as part of the development
• details of the materials you are going to use

You must provide the following plan drawings:

1. A site plan showing the proposed development, which must:
   • be drawn to an identified scale
   • show the direction of North.
2. Elevation drawings, which must:
   • be drawn to an identified scale (1:50 or 1:100)
   • show existing and proposed elevations of the house
   • show positions and dimensions of proposed windows.

You must provide a report for the management of the construction of development which includes:

• hours of operation during the construction phase
• how any adverse impacts of noise, dust, vibration and traffic on adjoining owners and occupiers will be mitigated.

You must provide:

• Your address
• Your contact details
• Your email address.

Apply and pay for a new application

It's much easier to apply online:

• quick and user-friendly system
• helps you choose the correct form
• step-by-step help and advice
• save your work and take a break
• attach plans and drawings
• a faster turnaround as the application is sent to the council immediately.

Please note: this is the council's preferred method of payment as we can only begin to assess your application once full payment is received.

Apply for planning permission on the Planning Portal website

Pay for an application which has already been submitted

If your application has already been submitted but not paid for, either yourself or by an agent, you can pay for them here:

Pay for an application which has already been submitted

Pay for additional planning fees

If you've already made an application, but we have told you that additional costs will apply due to the nature of your project, you can pay for them here:

Pay for additional planning services

If you'd prefer to submit a paper application, the Planning Portal website has all the necessary forms and help notes you may need:

Find and print a paper application form on the Planning Portal website

Submitting your paper form

Once completed, you can take the application form and accompanying plans to any customer service centre or post them to us at:

Planning and development management team
Cross Street
County Hall
Beverley
HU17 9BA.

Payment with your paper form

• Phone: by debit or credit card by calling (01482) 393647 during office hours
  
  Please note: wait a couple of days before calling to ensure the application has been received and loaded into the system. We can only begin to assess your application once full payment is received.

The Planning Portal website has in-depth advice helping you complete your application:

Read more about the planning application process on the Planning Portal website.

Detailed application advice guide on the Planning Portal website (pdf 227kb)

If you are comfortable drawing your own plans, you can do so. Please note however, if they are incorrect, this will delay the planning process.

Document size and format

• All plans, drawings and supporting documents must be submitted as pdf or Microsoft Word
• Photographs can be submitted as jpg, png, pdf, doc or docx
• Each file should be no larger than 10MB in siz
• Please do not submit exe files or zip files. We cannot accept these as they may mask a virus and will be blocked by firewalls
• We are unable to accept CAD files or dwg files - you are able to export any CAD drawing into a pdf format from within the software or you can use any pdf conversion software readily available online

The Planning Portal website has some tips on reducing file sizes

Drawing guidance

Only use colour where necessary:

• Blocks of colour or texture can appear as black or details picked out in colour may be lost
• Please ensure a high-contrast image is created otherwise the drawing often looks poor when scanned
• Some colour combinations that look effective on screen do not necessarily work well on a printed copy such as yellow on white
• Avoid the use of colour to show contrast - use hatched lines rather than grey shading
• Details of what colour to use for marking site boundaries on locations plans etc. can be found on our plan guidance webpage

Document properties

• Documents should default to their intended size when printing - the size and scale should be indicated (i.e. 1:100 at A1) and a scale bar present
• Please make sure all documents are correctly orientated for on-screen display
• Consider the resolution you use - 200dpi is normally adequate for black and white drawings
• All documents should be a standard metric size, e.g. A4, A3, A2 etc. For the benefit of parish councils and the public, A3 or A4 would be the preferred sizes for ease of viewing and download
• Those who have attempted to open A0-sized documents on mobile devices, including tablets, have reported having difficulty so we recommend where possible to use a desktop or laptop computer

You can see examples of plans which have been submitted by other people and accepted, on the Public Access planning website:

View planning applications on Public Access

If you don't want to draw your own plans you should ask a plan drawer or architect to do these for you.

Please note: The council cannot recommend specific agents to draw plans for you, but your builder will probably be able to recommend one for you, or you can find one through a search engine or telephone directory under 'architects' or 'architectural services'.