The Planning Process

This page details the process and timescales involved in acquiring planning permission for your industrial or storage building. Other industrial or commercial projects including permanent structures may be dealt with differently and we are happy to discuss these with you.

Should you have any questions, please refer to the FAQ below. You can also contact us by using our contact form at the footer of this website. Alternatively, you can email us.

Initial Instruction

Submit your details using the contact form on the Get Permission page. Once submitted, you will be contacted by a member of our team to discuss your industrial building requirements, our planning service and pricing.

You instruct us by accepting our Service Delivery Agreement (SDA) containing a breakdown of costs. This will be sent to you with our introductory email.

 Once you instruct us to undertake the planning work detailed in our SDA, you will be sent a planning questionnaire, providing us with the necessary details of your site and building requirements. The form can alternatively be submitted on the Questionnaire page of this website.

WITHIN 2-4 WEEKS

££

Our partner architects will produce the plans required for the planning application, based on the specifications agreed for your project.

We will produce a Planning Statement to be submitted alongside the plans, explaining your commercial need for the building and addressing any particular issues with your site.

We will submit the application once you have approved all documents and plans. The application fee is paid directly to the council (payment methods vary). You can calculate an estimate of this fee based on floorspace using the Planning Portal fee calculator.

If you do not own the site, or have less than 7 years remaining on your lease, we will serve notice on all landowners at the time of submission.

WITHIN 8 WEEKS or 13 weeks

​Once your local Council is satisfied with the information we have provided, they validate the application. The 8 week determination period then begins; or 13 weeks for buildings of more than 1,000 sq.m. or sites of over 1 hectare. We will monitor the application throughout this period, providing you with regular updates on progress.

 You are sent the planning decision notice following determination.

Frequently Asked Questions - F.A.Q.

What are the costs involved?

​For pricing details, please contact us using the details at the bottom of this page, or on the Get Permission page of this website.

How long will my application take?

The statutory determination period for an application is 8 weeks.

Once instructed, we can prepare an application within an average of 2 weeks, subject to our own preparation times and receipt of information from you and the building supplier.

​For major applications this is 13 weeks from validation, instead of 8 weeks for minor applications.

We can't wait that long, as the requirement for our building is urgent. What should I do?

Sometimes when the need is urgent, businesses erect a building before a planning application has been decided.

In considering whether to grant retrospective permission, the Council must still make a decision on based on the planning merits of the proposals.

​We can advise whether, in our judgement, retrospective planning permission is likely to be granted in an individual case. However, we do not recommend that development is carried out without planning permission and this would be at your own risk.