Demolition and when prior approval is required

Demolition counts as development, because the definition of building operations in section 55 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 includes it. What saves most projects from a full planning application is Part 11 of Schedule 2 to the General Permitted Development Order 2015, which permits demolition subject to the prior approval of the local planning authority for the method of demolition and the restoration of the site.

That distinction matters. Prior approval is not a decision about whether the building should come down. It is a decision about how, and about what the cleared site looks like afterwards. Which is also why the regime feels light until you hit one of the exceptions, where the position turns criminal rather than procedural.

When demolition is development and when it is not

A direction made under the Order excludes certain descriptions of building from being development at all, so their demolition needs nothing. In general terms this covers very small buildings measured by volume, and boundary walls, gates and fences below stated heights, with a lower height limit where they adjoin a highway.

Read the current direction rather than relying on remembered figures, because the thresholds are precise and the consequences of getting them wrong are real. Where a structure is close to a threshold, measure it and record the measurement with photographs before anything is touched.

Partial demolition sits awkwardly. Removing part of a building is often better characterised as an alteration, which may need permission in its own right depending on what remains and what is rebuilt. The safe approach on anything other than a clean site clearance is to describe the works accurately and ask the authority which route applies.

Buildings excluded and regimes that override

Three categories step outside Part 11 entirely:

• listed buildings, where demolition in whole or in part needs listed building consent, and the threshold for what counts as demolition is low
• scheduled monuments, where scheduled monument consent is required from the Secretary of State
• buildings in conservation areas within the scope of the control, where planning permission is required

Add to those any building subject to a condition on an existing permission that controls demolition, and any building where a direction has removed permitted development rights.

The pattern is consistent: where a building has heritage significance, the question of whether it should be demolished is reopened, and the applicant carries the burden of justifying the loss.

Prior approval of method and restoration

Where Part 11 applies, the procedure is an application for prior approval before demolition begins. What the authority is deciding is narrow, and what it wants to see reflects that:

1. A method statement describing the sequence, the plant to be used and how the structure will be brought down safely.
2. Hoarding, site security and pedestrian management, particularly where the building fronts a highway.
3. Dust suppression, noise and vibration control, and the hours during which noisy work will take place.
4. Protection of retained structures, including party walls and neighbouring buildings.
5. Site restoration: what the cleared site will look like, how it will be made safe and secure, and whether it will be levelled, seeded or surfaced.

The authority has a defined period in which to respond, and the conditions of the class include giving notice and displaying a site notice, so read the conditions in Part 11 before starting the clock. Much of the content overlaps with what a Construction Management Plan covers for the construction phase, and where the demolition and build are one project it makes sense for the two documents to be consistent.

Conservation areas and the separate position

Relevant demolition of an unlisted building in a conservation area needs planning permission, and carrying it out without permission is an offence under section 196D of the 1990 Act. That is a criminal provision rather than a planning breach curable by a retrospective application, which is worth saying twice to any client whose contractor is already booked.

The application is judged on whether the loss of the building harms the character or appearance of the conservation area. A building identified in the council's appraisal as making a positive contribution starts from harm, and the application has to justify it with public benefits. Councils also commonly refuse demolition where redevelopment is not secured, to avoid gap sites, so expect a requirement that the replacement has permission and a contract in place.

Where the building has any interest, a written and photographic record before works is a reasonable expectation and is often conditioned, and Historic Building Recording sets out what the recording levels involve.

Listed buildings and consent

Listed building consent is needed for demolition of a listed building in whole or in part, and for works affecting its character as a building of special interest. The threshold catches more than people expect: chimney stacks, internal partitions of some age, rear outriggers, staircases and historic joinery.

Two practical rules. Never let a contractor open up a listed building without a schedule of what is being removed and consent for it, because unauthorised works are an offence and there is no retrospective certificate that cures them. And where the structure's condition is the argument for demolition, commission a structural report before applying, remembering that deliberate neglect carries no weight in the applicant's favour.

Illustrative example: a 1930s detached house and a detached garage in a conservation area, with the garage of around 40 cubic metres and the house to be replaced. The garage may fall within the excluded classes on volume, so no consent is needed for it, subject to measurement. The house needs planning permission for its demolition, assessed against its contribution to the area, and the council is likely to require the replacement to be permitted first. Illustrative only, and the volume thresholds should be checked against the current direction.

Party wall, safety and environmental obligations

Planning is one strand. Alongside it:

• a notice to building control under the Building Act before demolition begins, which allows conditions about shoring, gas and water disconnection and the weatherproofing of exposed walls
• a refurbishment and demolition asbestos survey under the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012, with licensed removal where required
• party structure and adjacent excavation notices under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 where a shared wall or a neighbouring foundation is affected
• duties under the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015, including the appointment of the dutyholders and a construction phase plan
• waste duty of care, with carrier checks and transfer notes for every load

Utilities disconnection deserves its own line in the programme, because a live service found mid-demolition stops the site, and a gas disconnection can take weeks.

Records to retain

Keep the file as though someone will ask about it in five years, because on sale someone will. The prior approval decision or planning permission, the notices served, the method statement, the asbestos survey and clearance certificates, the building control notice, the party wall awards, waste transfer notes by stream, and the pre-demolition record of the building.

A Pre-redevelopment Audit is the document that captures the material content of the building before it goes, which matters both for reuse targets and for the waste records. Where permitted development and prior approval routes feel unfamiliar, how permission can arise without an application explains the mechanism, and the rest of the supporting documents sit across all 66 report types.

This is general guidance, not legal advice. Check the position with your local planning authority or a qualified professional before relying on it, and check the current demolition direction and the conditions in Part 11 before any work starts.

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