Article 35 and the duty to give reasons

A decision notice that refuses planning permission has to tell you why, and the reasons for refusal duty is set out in article 35 of the Development Management Procedure Order 2015. The notice must state clearly and precisely the full reasons for the refusal, specifying all the policies and proposals in the development plan that are relevant to the decision. The same duty applies to every condition imposed on a grant.

That obligation does more work than it looks. The reasons define what an appeal is about, what a resubmission has to fix, and whether the decision is lawful at all.

What the decision notice must contain

Article 35 sets out the content of the written notice. Beyond the decision itself, the notice must give the full reasons for a refusal, the full reasons for each condition, and a statement about the applicant's right of appeal. Where the authority gave pre-application advice, the notice is also required to say something about that.

A notice that simply says "refused, contrary to policy" is not compliant. Nor is one that lists ten policies without saying which part of the proposal conflicts with which policy and how.

For an objector or an applicant, this means the notice is a usable document rather than a formality. Read it as a specification of the problem.

Reasons for refusal and for each condition

Each reason should be capable of standing alone. If a scheme is refused for three reasons, an appeal has to answer all three, and a resubmission has to address all three. One unaddressed reason is enough to refuse again.

Conditions attract the same duty, and this is the part most often done badly. Every condition needs its own reason, specifying the relevant development plan policies. A condition with a reason of "in the interests of amenity" tells nobody what has to change to get it discharged, and the vagueness usually surfaces later when the applicant applies for approval of details or discharge of conditions and the officer and the applicant disagree about what the condition was for.

So where a condition's reason is inadequate, ask the case officer to clarify it in writing before the compliance works are designed. That letter becomes part of the file and helps everyone later.

Why inadequate reasons matter

Three practical consequences follow from a badly reasoned notice.

An appeal becomes harder to run on both sides. The inspector has to work out what the council's case actually is, and a council whose reasons shift between the notice and the appeal statement risks a costs application against it.

A resubmission becomes guesswork. If the reason does not identify the harm, you cannot design it out, and the second application fails for a reason nobody could have anticipated.

And the decision may be challengeable. Where reasons are so inadequate that the decision cannot be understood, that can be a ground for judicial review, although the courts take a practical view and will not quash a decision whose basis is obvious from the committee report.

Reasons for a grant and the narrower duty

There is no general duty to give reasons for granting permission. The requirement to include a summary of reasons for a grant was removed in 2013, so most approvals arrive with conditions and their reasons, but no narrative of why the council said yes.

Two qualifications matter. For development subject to the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations 2017, the regulations impose their own requirements about what the decision must record, which produces a fuller statement. And the courts have recognised a common law duty to give reasons in particular circumstances, notably where a committee grants permission against the officer's recommendation on a sensitive site.

Outside those situations, the reasons for a grant are found in the officer's report and, where the application went to committee, in the minutes and the recording of the meeting. Those documents are public, and they are usually more informative than the notice.

Using the reasons to shape a resubmission

Take each reason, break it into its parts, and write against each part what the change is and what evidence shows the change works. Then put that analysis at the front of the resubmission, with a short table cross-referring each reason to the drawing or report that answers it.

Officers appreciate this because it tells them immediately whether to recommend approval. Appeal inspectors appreciate it for the same reason.

Where the reasons point to a technical issue, the right answer is usually the relevant report rather than a longer narrative. PlanScope's index of all 66 report types sets out which document addresses which issue, which helps when a reason cites flood risk, trees, noise or heritage.

Remember the fee position: there is a single free further application on the same site within a defined period after a refusal, where the development is of the same character and description. A substantially redesigned scheme may fall outside it, so check before assuming.

Challenging a notice with no reasons

Start with correspondence. Ask the council, in writing, to provide the reasons required by article 35 and to confirm which development plan policies it relies on. Many authorities will issue a corrected notice rather than defend an obviously deficient one.

If that fails, the options narrow. An applicant can appeal under section 78 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 and argue the merits regardless of the state of the reasons. Anyone with standing can consider judicial review, which has a short time limit for planning decisions and needs legal advice immediately rather than eventually.

Judicial review is about legality, not merits. Winning one usually means the decision is retaken, which may produce the same outcome with better reasons.

Reading a decision notice properly

Work through it in a fixed order and you will not miss anything.

1. Check the decision and the date, because time limits run from it.
2. Read the description of development and compare it with what you expected.
3. List the approved drawings by number and revision, and check you have each one.
4. Read every condition and its reason, marking those that need action before work starts.
5. Note the conditions that need action before occupation.
6. Check whether permitted development rights have been removed.
7. Read the appeal rights statement and diarise the deadline.
8. Note any informatives, which are not conditions and are not enforceable.

Step three catches more problems than any other. A notice approving a drawing revision you have not seen means the approved scheme is not the one you think it is, and the detail of what was reserved and what was settled matters in the same way it does at reserved matters stage.

Enter your postcode on PlanScope to see which reports a resubmission is likely to need.

This is general guidance, not legal advice. Check the position with your local planning authority or a qualified professional before relying on it.