Building Underground- anybody know about planning law?
Discussion
Just a quick one...
We are in the process of buying a house and i have seen somewhere i quite like. In the "budget" i have agreed with "her indoors" to allow me to build a fair old sized garage next to the house as part of a possible extension out the back of the property (yada yada) One of the things i have considered is going DOWN aswell as up for the new construction.
What's the law surrounding underground structures etc. Im assuming you still need planning permission?
We are in the process of buying a house and i have seen somewhere i quite like. In the "budget" i have agreed with "her indoors" to allow me to build a fair old sized garage next to the house as part of a possible extension out the back of the property (yada yada) One of the things i have considered is going DOWN aswell as up for the new construction.
What's the law surrounding underground structures etc. Im assuming you still need planning permission?
Bizzle said:
Just a quick one...
We are in the process of buying a house and i have seen somewhere i quite like. In the "budget" i have agreed with "her indoors" to allow me to build a fair old sized garage next to the house as part of a possible extension out the back of the property (yada yada) One of the things i have considered is going DOWN aswell as up for the new construction.
What's the law surrounding underground structures etc. Im assuming you still need planning permission?
I think it depends on the local authority. Round here I believe one lot (Surrey Heath) doesn't care if you put a basement under a house whilst the neighbouring authority (Runnymede)counts it as part of the square footage of whatever it is you are proposing to build.We are in the process of buying a house and i have seen somewhere i quite like. In the "budget" i have agreed with "her indoors" to allow me to build a fair old sized garage next to the house as part of a possible extension out the back of the property (yada yada) One of the things i have considered is going DOWN aswell as up for the new construction.
What's the law surrounding underground structures etc. Im assuming you still need planning permission?
You need to check with your local planners.
As part of the review of domestic 'Permitted Development Rights' (PD Rights) they chose not to include/clarify basements and householder development rights... however a separate 'study' (Nov 2008) looked into the prospect of clarifying the future position concerning basements. (I think it is currently doind the rounds so not implemented!)
From a quick scan of this, many Local Authorities (of those that were included) considered that basements fell within the remit of PD Rights, and as such do not require planning permission, some even having their own design guides for basement construction.
However, in response to your questions;
- different LA's interpret the PD rights differently - so go & speak to them
- I would interpret that if they do consider it to be PD rights then this would be either directly underneath the building & would equally be limiting in the construction of lightwells (go & speak to them for their interpretation)
With regard to PD rights you will either be looking at a detached building OR an extension to the dwelling;
- if you were to carry out the construction of the new garage (detached?) then this in itself would be restricted by the PD Rights for 'Class E - provision within the curtilage of a dwellinghouse' and you may find that the) October 2008 changes to the PD Rights Legislation may affect what you wish to do/build. Within this it states 'Development not permitted if... the building would have more than one storey' - therefore my interpretation is; basement plus ground floor equals 2 storeys and would require planning permission.
OR
- if you are considering an extension to the existing house then it would come under 'Class A - enlargement... of a dwellinghouse' and again there are several criteria that it would have to satisfy in order to be PD and not require the benefit of planning permission (and to be honest I think that you may be fighting a lost cause on that front due to costs)
Notwithstanding the above... they are expensive to construct properly AND more importantly (depending upon the location in relation to existing buildings, structures, etc.) you will be into the realms of the Party Wall Act... I have one such PWA going on at the moment and the other surveyors fees are £4,000...
(bored of typing now & its feeding time!)
From a quick scan of this, many Local Authorities (of those that were included) considered that basements fell within the remit of PD Rights, and as such do not require planning permission, some even having their own design guides for basement construction.
However, in response to your questions;
- different LA's interpret the PD rights differently - so go & speak to them
- I would interpret that if they do consider it to be PD rights then this would be either directly underneath the building & would equally be limiting in the construction of lightwells (go & speak to them for their interpretation)
With regard to PD rights you will either be looking at a detached building OR an extension to the dwelling;
- if you were to carry out the construction of the new garage (detached?) then this in itself would be restricted by the PD Rights for 'Class E - provision within the curtilage of a dwellinghouse' and you may find that the) October 2008 changes to the PD Rights Legislation may affect what you wish to do/build. Within this it states 'Development not permitted if... the building would have more than one storey' - therefore my interpretation is; basement plus ground floor equals 2 storeys and would require planning permission.
OR
- if you are considering an extension to the existing house then it would come under 'Class A - enlargement... of a dwellinghouse' and again there are several criteria that it would have to satisfy in order to be PD and not require the benefit of planning permission (and to be honest I think that you may be fighting a lost cause on that front due to costs)
Notwithstanding the above... they are expensive to construct properly AND more importantly (depending upon the location in relation to existing buildings, structures, etc.) you will be into the realms of the Party Wall Act... I have one such PWA going on at the moment and the other surveyors fees are £4,000...
(bored of typing now & its feeding time!)
Gassing Station | Homes, Gardens and DIY | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff