Antennas and satellite dishes under Class H size limits
Class H permits satellite dishes within four limits: number, size, height above the roof, and position on designated land. The installations that fail are usually on chimneys or front elevations.
Class H sets a satellite dish permitted development allowance built from four limits: how many antennas you may have, how large each one may be, how high it may sit, and where it may go on a house in a conservation area. Most domestic installations pass all four without anyone checking. The ones that fail are chimney mounted dishes, front elevation dishes on designated land, and houses that already have two.
The figures below are the limits in Class H of Part 1 of Schedule 2 to the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015. Check the current wording on legislation.gov.uk before ordering equipment, because the class has been amended and the detail is drafted tightly.
What Class H permits
Class H permits the installation, alteration or replacement of a microwave antenna on a dwellinghouse or within its curtilage. Microwave antenna covers satellite dishes and terrestrial microwave antennas.
A conventional television aerial is not a microwave antenna, and installing one is generally treated as not requiring planning permission at all. That is a different route to the same answer, and it does not apply to a listed building, where any fixing into historic fabric needs listed building consent.
Where the building contains flats, read the wording of the class carefully, because the limits are expressed differently for a block of flats than for a house. Equipment installed by a telecommunications operator under the electronic communications code falls under a separate part of the Order again.
How many antennas you may have
Two, on a house of 15 metres or less in height, counting everything on the dwellinghouse and within its curtilage. Four on a building over 15 metres.
The count includes what is already there. A house with a satellite dish on the rear wall and a microwave antenna on the gable has used its allowance, and a third installation needs permission even if it would be invisible. It also includes antennas on outbuildings within the curtilage, which people forget.
Replacing an existing antenna with another in the same position does not add to the count, and replacement is expressly permitted by the class.
Size limits by position
Size is measured as a linear dimension, excluding any projecting feed element, reinforcing rim, mountings and brackets. The limits:
| Where the building sits | Maximum linear dimension |
|---|---|
| Building 15 metres or less in height | 100 cm |
| Building over 15 metres | 130 cm |
| Antenna on a chimney | 60 cm |
There is also a cubic capacity limit of 35 litres for each individual antenna. On a standard domestic dish that is rarely in issue, but it bites on enclosed or shrouded units and on some multi-satellite installations.
Measure the dish itself, not the box it came in. A nominal 80 centimetre dish is usually within the 100 centimetre limit on its longest dimension, and a nominal 1.2 metre dish is not.
Chimney mounted dishes
The chimney is the most restricted position in the class, and for good reason: it is the most visible.
An antenna on a chimney must not exceed 60 centimetres in any linear dimension, and it must not protrude above the chimney. Both conditions have to be met. A dish that clears the pot by a few centimetres fails, however small it is.
Where the installer wants the chimney for line of sight reasons, the alternatives worth testing first are a pole mounted position in the rear garden with a buried cable run, a rear roof slope bracket, or a gable wall mount. Any of those is easier than the application, and the application for a chimney dish in a conservation area is not an easy one to win.
Height above the roof
Two separate rules, depending on whether the roof has a chimney.
On a roof without a chimney, no part of the antenna may exceed the highest part of the roof. On a roof with a chimney, the antenna must not exceed the highest part of the chimney, or 60 centimetres measured from the highest part of the ridge, whichever is the lower of the two.
That second rule is the one that surprises people. The presence of a chimney does not give you a free 60 centimetres above the ridge if the chimney itself is lower than that.
A wall mounted dish on a gable or a rear elevation usually avoids both rules entirely, because it sits below the roof line. That is why most compliant domestic installations end up on a wall rather than a roof.
Designated land and the highway-facing test
On article 2(3) land, which means conservation areas, National Parks, National Landscapes, the Broads and World Heritage Sites, Class H is restricted in two ways.
First, an antenna may not be installed on a chimney, wall or roof slope that faces onto, and is visible from, a highway. Both limbs matter. A wall that faces the road but is screened by a tall boundary wall or a mature hedge may not be visible from the highway, and the test is factual. Take photographs from the pavement.
Second, the class does not permit installation on a building exceeding 15 metres in height on designated land.
Highway includes public footpaths and bridleways as well as roads. The designated land logic is the same one that applies to other householder classes, as our note on front garden paving and Class F explains.
Permitted development rights can also be removed by an Article 4 direction, and some conservation area directions cover antennas specifically. Check the direction before relying on the class.
Siting, removal and when you need an application
Class H carries two conditions that apply to every installation, designated land or not.
The antenna must be sited, so far as practicable, to minimise its effect on the external appearance of the building. And it must be removed as soon as reasonably practicable when it is no longer needed for reception. The second condition is rarely enforced and is still a condition, which matters on a property with several redundant dishes at sale.
Where Class H does not cover the installation, the route is a householder planning application. What makes it decidable:
- An elevation drawing showing the antenna, its diameter and its exact position, with the ridge and chimney heights dimensioned.
- Photographs from the street and from the nearest public viewpoint, with the proposed position marked.
- A short statement of the alternatives tested and why they do not work, including a line of sight explanation if that is the constraint.
- A dark colour finish specified rather than left open.
- In a conservation area or on a building adjoining a listed one, a short Heritage Statement addressing the effect on character and appearance.
A brief Planning Statement carrying those points keeps the application proportionate to what is being asked. Officers approve dishes in sensitive locations where the applicant has shown the discreet options were tried and failed.
If the position is arguable and you are relying on Class H, keep photographs taken from the highway on the day of installation, with the dimensions written on the drawing. That is the evidence that answers a question four years later.
Measure the dish, count what is already on the house, and stand on the pavement to check visibility before anything is fixed to the wall. You can browse the report types by category if the property is in a conservation area and an application is needed.
This is general guidance, not legal advice, and a lawful development certificate is the only formal way to confirm that works are lawful. 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.
Frequently asked questions
How many satellite dishes can a house have under permitted development?
Two on a building of 15 metres or less in height, counting every antenna on the dwellinghouse and within its curtilage, including any on outbuildings. Four are permitted on a building over 15 metres. Replacing an existing antenna in the same position does not add to the count.
What size dish is permitted development?
On a building of 15 metres or less, no linear dimension may exceed 100 centimetres, excluding the feed element, reinforcing rim, mountings and brackets. Above 15 metres the figure is 130 centimetres, and an antenna on a chimney is limited to 60 centimetres, with a 35 litre cubic capacity limit for each antenna.
Can I put a satellite dish on my chimney?
Only within tight limits. An antenna on a chimney must not exceed 60 centimetres in any linear dimension and must not protrude above the chimney. Both conditions apply, so a dish clearing the pot fails however small it is. A rear wall or garden pole mount is usually easier.
Are satellite dishes allowed in a conservation area?
Yes, but not on a chimney, wall or roof slope that both faces onto and is visible from a highway. Visibility is a question of fact, so a street-facing wall screened by a tall boundary wall or hedge may still qualify. Take photographs from the pavement to record the position.
Do I need permission for an ordinary TV aerial?
A conventional television aerial is not a microwave antenna, so Class H does not apply, and installing one is generally treated as not requiring planning permission. That does not help on a listed building, where any fixing into historic fabric needs listed building consent in its own right.
Does an unused dish have to be taken down?
Class H carries a condition that the antenna is removed as soon as reasonably practicable once it is no longer needed for reception. Enforcement is rare, but the condition exists, and several redundant dishes on an elevation can become a point of discussion on a sale.
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.