Checklist for a householder planning appeal

A householder appeal has to be lodged within 12 weeks of the date on the decision notice, and once it is lodged you cannot add anything to it. Those two facts shape every decision you make after a refusal. The 12 weeks is shorter than the six months allowed for most other appeals, and the prohibition on later submissions means the appeal you send is the whole of your case.

So the first question is not how to appeal. It is whether to appeal at all, or to use the free resubmission and design out the refusal reasons instead.

Deciding whether to appeal or reapply

Read the refusal reasons and sort them into two piles.

Reasons that describe a design or technical failing can usually be designed out: an extension too deep, a window overlooking a neighbour, insufficient parking, a roof form out of keeping. Those are better answered with a revised scheme than with an argument.

Reasons that rest on a policy judgement are appeal material: the authority says the principle of development is unacceptable, or applies a local plan policy in a way you think is wrong, or gives weight to a consideration you say is not material. An inspector takes a fresh view on those.

The fee regulations allow one further application on the same site for development of substantially the same character within 12 months of the refusal, without a further fee. That free resubmission is a real asset and it is lost if you spend the twelve months appealing. Where a scheme can be amended to meet the objection, the resubmission is usually faster and more likely to succeed, and talking to the neighbours before you submit it helps, as our neighbour engagement template sets out.

One caution: you cannot appeal and resubmit the same scheme simultaneously and expect both to be entertained. Pick a route.

The deadline and how it is calculated

The 12 weeks runs from the date of the decision notice, not from the date you received it and not from the date you read it. Diarise it the day the notice arrives.

The Planning Inspectorate has no discretion to accept a late householder appeal in ordinary circumstances, and an appeal lodged on week 13 is simply invalid. If you are close to the deadline, lodge the appeal with what you have rather than waiting to perfect it.

Where the authority never issued a decision, the position is different, because the appeal is against non-determination and a different time limit applies. Check the current position on gov.uk before relying on either figure, since the procedural rules are amended from time to time.

There is no fee to appeal. The cost is your time and any professional help you choose to take.

What the appeal form requires

The householder appeal is made through the Planning Inspectorate's online casework portal, and the form asks for a defined set of material:

1. The application reference, the authority's name and the date of the decision.
2. A copy of the decision notice.
3. A copy of the application form as submitted.
4. The plans and drawings as submitted to the authority, unchanged.
5. Your grounds of appeal.
6. Confirmation of whether the site can be seen from public land.

Item four is where people go wrong. The appeal is against the refusal of the scheme that was submitted, so the drawings must be the ones the authority considered. Sending improved drawings does not improve the appeal, and the inspector will determine the original scheme regardless.

Item six determines whether the site visit is unaccompanied or accompanied. Where the development can be assessed from the street or a public footpath, the inspector visits alone. Where internal or rear access is needed, a date is arranged and both parties may attend without discussing the merits.

The appeal statement and its length

The grounds of appeal go in the form, and brevity helps. A householder appeal is decided on the papers by an inspector reading a modest file, and the statements that work are short, ordered by refusal reason, and specific.

A structure that reads well:

• one paragraph describing the proposal and the site
• one short section per refusal reason, each saying what the authority concluded, why that conclusion is wrong, and what the correct conclusion is
• a reference to the relevant development plan policy by its number, and what it actually says
• any material consideration you rely on, stated plainly
• a closing paragraph asking for permission to be granted

Three to five pages is usually plenty. What persuades an inspector is specificity, not volume: a separation distance in metres, a ridge height compared with the neighbouring ridge, the policy wording quoted rather than paraphrased.

Where the original application included a Planning Statement or a Design and Access Statement, refer the inspector to the relevant part rather than repeating it.

Documents to include and documents to leave out

Include the decision notice, the submitted application and drawings, photographs of the existing site and its context, and any document that was before the authority and is relevant to a refusal reason.

Leave out revised drawings, a new scheme, correspondence with neighbours that was not before the authority, documents about matters the inspector cannot consider, and anything you have not already provided to the council. The expedited procedure does not allow further submissions after the appeal is made, and material that arrives later is normally returned.

Photographs are the exception worth attention, because they are usually the only new material that is both allowed and useful. Dated photographs with a numbered location plan, showing boundary treatments, levels and the relationship to neighbours, give the inspector context before the visit.

What the inspector will and will not consider

The determination is made on the development plan and other material considerations. The matters that come up in householder appeals and are not material include:

Loss of light to a habitable room is material, and distinct from the civil right to light. Overlooking and loss of privacy are material. Harm to the character and appearance of an area is material, and is the ground on which most householder appeals are actually decided.

Personal circumstances carry limited weight and the weight varies. Where a scheme is needed to accommodate a disabled family member, say so with evidence, but do not build the appeal on it.

An illustrative checklist for a refused extension

The following checklist is illustrative, for a two-storey side extension refused on character and overlooking grounds.

1. Diarise 12 weeks from the decision notice date.
2. Sort the two refusal reasons: character is a judgement to appeal, overlooking may be designable out.
3. Decide between appeal and free resubmission within the first fortnight, not the last.
4. Download the decision notice, application form and submitted drawings.
5. Take dated photographs of the street scene, both neighbouring properties and the rear elevations, with a numbered location plan.
6. Measure and record the separation distance to the neighbouring window and the relative ridge heights.
7. Find the development plan policies cited and quote the operative wording.
8. Draft the grounds, one section per refusal reason, three to five pages.
9. Check nothing new is being introduced that was not before the authority.
10. Submit through the casework portal, keep the submission receipt, and confirm whether the site is visible from public land.

Step three is the one that decides outcomes. Householders who spend ten weeks deciding end up appealing by default, having lost the chance to prepare either route properly.

Enter your postcode on PlanScope to see which reports your site needs. This is general guidance, not legal advice; check the position with your local planning authority or a qualified professional before relying on it. PlanScope provides AI-assisted draft reports for planning applications. Reports should be reviewed before submission. We do not guarantee planning approval.