Appealing a refusal or submitting a fresh application
An appeal argues the council was wrong. A revised application accepts the scheme was. Here is how to read a refusal, apply the deadlines and choose between them.
After a householder refusal you have two routes and one short window in which to choose between them. An appeal under section 78 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 asks the Planning Inspectorate to redetermine the same scheme. A revised application asks the same council to consider a changed scheme, and within twelve months of the refusal it usually costs nothing in fee terms.
The decision turns on a single question: is the council wrong, or is the scheme wrong? Appeals are for the first. Revised applications are for the second.
Read the reasons for refusal properly
Start with the decision notice and then get the officer's report, which is normally published on the council's planning register. The notice gives the reasons in formal language. The report gives the reasoning, the policies relied on and, often, the sentence that tells you whether a smaller scheme would have been recommended for approval.
Sort each reason into one of three categories. Reasons of principle say the development should not happen at all in this location. Reasons of degree say the development is acceptable but this version is too large, too close or too prominent. Reasons of evidence say the council could not assess something because a document was missing or inadequate.
Evidence reasons almost always point to a revised application, because supplying the missing survey is quicker and less costly than arguing about it. Reasons of degree usually point to a revised application too. Reasons of principle are the ones worth appealing, provided the policy analysis is arguable on its face.
Watch for reasons that were added late by a consultee. A highways objection that appeared a week before the decision, without the applicant being given a chance to respond, is a different proposition from one raised at validation.
The deadlines
| Route | Deadline | Who decides |
|---|---|---|
| Householder appeal | 12 weeks from the date on the decision notice | Planning Inspectorate |
| Most other planning appeals | 6 months from the date on the decision notice | Planning Inspectorate |
| Revised application with fee exemption | Within 12 months of the refusal | The local planning authority |
The twelve week householder deadline is strict and the Inspectorate will not normally accept a late appeal. Twelve weeks sounds generous until you spend six of them getting a revised drawing set priced.
The fee exemption sits on a different clock, so it is possible to submit a revised application, wait for the outcome, and still be inside the appeal window on the original refusal. It is also possible to lose both by drifting.
The fee exemption for a revised application
Regulation 9 of the Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications, Deemed Applications, Requests and Site Visits) (England) Regulations 2012 removes the fee for a further application where the same applicant applies for development of the same character or description on the same site within twelve months of a refusal, or within twelve months of the making of an application that was withdrawn. It is available once.
Three conditions catch people out. The applicant has to be the same person. The site has to be the same. And the development has to be of the same character or description, which means a resubmission that changes the proposal into something materially different loses the exemption.
The exemption removes the application fee, not the cost of the work. Revised drawings, an updated Planning Statement and any new survey still have to be paid for, and those usually exceed the householder fee anyway.
What a householder appeal involves
Householder appeals run on written representations through the Appeals Casework Portal. The appellant submits the appeal form, the decision notice, the plans and a statement of case. The council submits its questionnaire and the representations it received at application stage. There is no exchange of further written rounds and no hearing, and the appellant cannot introduce a revised scheme.
That last point is the one most householders misunderstand. The inspector determines the scheme that was refused. A drawing showing the extension one metre shorter is not before them.
An inspector visits the site, usually unaccompanied unless internal access is needed. Current timescales are published by the Planning Inspectorate and are worth checking before you commit, because they move.
Where the refusal turned on loss of light to a neighbour, the evidence that shifts an inspector is measured rather than asserted. A Daylight and Sunlight Assessment applying the recognised methodology is worth more than a paragraph saying the neighbour will be fine, and our walkthrough of a householder appeal decided on daylight shows how that plays out in practice.
What each route can achieve
An appeal can find that the council misapplied its own policy, gave excessive weight to a neighbour objection, or reached a conclusion that the evidence does not support. It cannot make a scheme smaller. A revised application can change the design, add evidence and respond directly to the officer's concerns, but it cannot overturn a policy judgement the council has already made and will make again.
There is also a middle route that gets forgotten. Where the refusal is one of degree, ask the case officer what would be acceptable before redesigning. Most officers will answer, and the answer is free.
On appeals against conditions rather than refusals, be careful. Section 79 lets an inspector deal with the application as if it had been made to them at first instance, so an appeal against one unwelcome condition puts the whole permission in play. That risk does not arise where there is no permission to lose.
Costs on appeal
Either party can apply for an award of costs on the ground that the other has behaved unreasonably and caused wasted expense. Costs do not follow the event, so winning an appeal does not by itself produce an award.
Unreasonable behaviour by a council includes refusing against officer advice without evidence, failing to produce evidence to substantiate a reason for refusal, and adding reasons that have no policy basis. Appellants get caught by withdrawing at the last minute, producing new evidence late, or appealing something that had no prospect of success.
For a householder appeal the sums are modest, but a costs application also concentrates a council's mind before the appeal statement is written. The guidance on how those applications are judged is published as part of the appeals guidance, and it repays reading before you draft anything.
Deciding within the first fortnight
Give yourself two weeks and work through four questions in order. Does the officer's report reveal a scheme the council would have supported? If yes, revise. Is the reason for refusal supported by a policy that actually says what the council says it says? If no, appeal. Is there missing evidence that would have answered the objection? If yes, revise and supply it. And is the extra floor area actually worth the delay?
Then pick one route and commit. The worst outcome is a half-hearted revised application submitted in month eleven, refused in month thirteen, with the appeal window on the original decision long closed. Where an appeal looks likely but the case needs building, our note on choosing written representations over a hearing covers how the procedure choice affects what you can say.
This is general guidance, not legal advice; check the position with your local planning authority or a qualified professional before relying on it.
Enter your postcode on PlanScope to draft the supporting documents a revised application will need. PlanScope provides AI-assisted draft reports for planning applications. Reports should be reviewed before submission. We do not guarantee planning approval.
Frequently asked questions
How long do I have to appeal a householder refusal?
Twelve weeks from the date on the decision notice. Most other planning appeals allow six months. The Planning Inspectorate applies the householder deadline strictly and will not normally accept a late appeal, so diarise the date as soon as the notice arrives rather than after you have finished considering the alternatives.
Is the second application really free?
The application fee is waived under regulation 9 of the 2012 fees regulations where the same applicant submits development of the same character or description on the same site within twelve months of a refusal. It is available once. Professional fees, revised drawings and any new survey work are not covered, and those usually cost more than the fee.
Can I change the drawings during an appeal?
No. The inspector determines the scheme that was refused, on the plans that were before the council. A reduced or amended design is a new application, not an appeal point. If your view is that a smaller scheme would succeed, the revised application route is the one that lets you test it.
Could an appeal leave me worse off?
On an appeal against refusal there is no permission to lose, so the downside is time and cost. On an appeal against a condition attached to a permission, section 79 allows the inspector to deal with the application afresh, which puts the whole permission in play. Take advice before appealing a condition on a permission you want to keep.
When are costs awarded on a planning appeal?
Only where a party has behaved unreasonably and caused the other to incur wasted expense. Costs do not follow the outcome, so winning does not produce an award by itself. Typical examples include a council failing to substantiate a reason for refusal with evidence, or an appellant withdrawing at a very late stage.
Sources and further reading
This article is general guidance about the planning system in England and, where stated, the rest of the UK. It is not legal or professional advice. Check your local planning authority’s validation requirements and take professional advice for your specific site.