Glossary – Page 8
Substantive definitions of planning terms with their policy source and a worked example.
Glossary articles – page 8
484 articlesOrdinary watercourse consent and when it is needed
Planning permission does not authorise works in a ditch. Ordinary watercourse consent comes from the lead local flood authority under the Land Drainage Act 1991, and it is usually applied for too late.
Background sound level: how LA90 is determined
The representative background sound level drives every BS 4142 result. This is how LA90,T is measured, how a representative value is chosen, and what a reviewing officer will question.
Freeboard in a flood risk assessment, explained
Freeboard covers the uncertainty in a modelled flood level rather than adding arbitrary height. Understanding what it is protecting against explains why the figure varies between sites.
Greenfield runoff rate and why it sets the discharge limit
The greenfield runoff rate describes how a site would drain if nothing had been built on it. It sets the discharge ceiling under the national sustainable drainage standards, and the storage volume follows from it.
Section 70C: when a council can decline to determine
Section 70C of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 lets an authority decline to determine an application covering matters already alleged in an enforcement notice. The order of events decides whether your planning merits are heard.
Reserved matters: the five defined in the DMPO
The five reserved matters have statutory definitions, and each one fixes something different. Knowing what each covers decides what an outline permission has actually settled.
Section 73 variation of planning conditions
A section 73 application varies or removes a condition and produces a new planning permission alongside the original. It cannot extend a time limit or change the description of development.
Ownership certificates A, B, C and D on a planning form
The ownership certificate states who owns the application site and confirms that other owners and agricultural tenants have been notified. Choosing the wrong one invalidates the application, and a false statement is an offence.
Main modifications at a local plan examination
Main modifications are the changes an examining inspector recommends to make a submitted local plan sound or legally compliant. They can only be recommended if the council asks, and the council must adopt them or not adopt the plan.
Housing Delivery Test
Three thresholds carry the practical content of the Housing Delivery Test: an action plan below 95 per cent, a 20 per cent buffer below 85, and the presumption below 75.
Weight given to a previous refusal on the same site
An earlier refusal has to be taken into account but does not settle the outcome. This covers the weight planning history carries, the changes that justify a different decision and the free resubmission.
Standing advice from planning consultees, explained
If standing advice applies, the consultee never sees your file. The published checklist becomes the test, and there is nobody to negotiate with.
The 45-degree guideline and neighbour amenity
The 45-degree line is local guidance rather than national policy. A breach is not automatically a refusal, and compliance is not a guarantee of approval.
Section 288 challenge or judicial review: which applies
Two High Court routes exist for challenging a planning decision, and the six week clock starts on the decision letter. Here is which route covers which decision, the grounds available and what a win actually delivers.
Severance of a planning unit and what it changes
Selling or letting part of your premises can change its planning character without touching the fabric. An ancillary use, severed, has to stand on its own.
Back-to-back distances and privacy standards
Separation distances are rules of thumb standing in for a judgement about privacy. Here is where they come from and how to argue a reduced distance.
Twin tracking planning applications: when it works
Running a duplicate application alongside an appeal can buy negotiating room. It can also cost you the free resubmission and invite a refusal to determine.
Chargeable development: what CIL is calculated on
The Community Infrastructure Levy is calculated on new gross internal area, less the floorspace of buildings that pass the in-use test. Here is how the measurement, the deductions and the liability notice actually work.
Saved policy: why old local plan policies still apply
A saved policy carries full statutory force until it is replaced. What varies is weight, not status. Here is how to check what is saved and how to argue that a policy is out of date.
Reserved matters: the five and what they cover
Reserved matters are access, appearance, landscaping, layout and scale. Here is what each covers, the statutory deadlines, and where a reserved matters submission strays outside the outline permission.
The six tests a planning condition has to meet
A planning condition must be necessary, relevant to planning, relevant to the development, enforceable, precise and reasonable. Here is what each test means in practice and how to remove a condition that fails one.
Prior notification of demolition and what it covers
The council controls the method of demolition and the restoration of the site, not the principle. Here is what to submit, what is exempt and where it fails.
Deemed advertisement consent and areas of special control
Most fascias and boards are displayed under deemed consent. Here is what the classes allow, what an area of special control removes and when to apply.
Stopping up and diversion orders under section 247
Planning permission does not touch public highway rights. Here is how section 247 and section 257 orders work, who makes them, and how long they take.
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