Before any building project gets under way, a bit of homework on the rules saves time, money and headaches later. These are the four resources we point customers to most often, and what each one is actually useful for.
Find your local planning authority
Planning Portal: find your local planning authority
Planning permission is handled by your local council, and this tool tells you in seconds which authority covers your address. Use it when you want to check whether your extension or conversion needs permission, look up local planning policies, or track an application. Around York our customers usually fall under City of York Council, North Yorkshire Council or Harrogate’s planning team, but it always pays to check rather than assume.
The Approved Documents
GOV.UK: Building Regulations Approved Documents
These are the official guidance documents for meeting the Building Regulations, covering everything from structure and fire safety to ventilation, drainage and energy efficiency. You do not need to read them cover to cover, that is our job, but they are the reference we work to on every extension, loft conversion and structural alteration. If you want to understand why we insist on certain details, the answer is usually in here.
Self-build and custom housebuilding
GOV.UK: self-build and custom housebuilding guidance
Thinking bigger than an extension? Councils in England keep a register of people looking for self-build plots, and they are legally required to grant enough planning permissions to meet that demand. This guidance explains how the registers work and what your council owes you as a prospective self-builder. Well worth a read if building your own home is on the horizon.
The RIBA Plan of Work
The industry-standard framework that breaks a building project into eight stages, from initial brief through design, construction and handover. If you are working with an architect, this is the language they will use, and knowing roughly where your project sits in the stages makes every conversation easier. We find it especially helpful on larger projects where design, structural engineering and the build itself all need to line up.
Unsure how any of this applies to your project? Get in touch and we will talk it through in plain English, no jargon.