Meanwhile use of a vacant unit: the planning routes
Most meanwhile uses of a vacant unit need no permission at all, because Class E is wide. The ones that do need a time limited permission, and the reversion has to be evidenced.
Before you apply for anything, check whether a meanwhile use of a vacant unit needs planning permission at all. Since the Use Classes Order was amended in 2020, Class E covers shops, cafes and restaurants, offices, light industry, indoor sport, nurseries and health services, and movement within a single use class is not development. A vacant former shop occupied for six months by a bookbinder, a yoga studio or a community workspace is usually still in Class E, so there is nothing to apply for. Establish the lawful use first, then work out which of the remaining routes applies.
Whether a temporary occupation needs permission at all
Section 55 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 defines development to include a material change of use. Section 57 and the Use Classes Order together mean that a change within the same class is not a material change of use, and no permission is required.
So the first question is narrow: what class is the unit lawfully in, and what class does the proposed occupier fall into? A few traps:
- Hot food takeaway, drinking establishment, cinema, live music venue, nightclub, betting office and payday loan shop are sui generis, outside every class, and moving into any of them is a change of use
- A use that involves cooking and selling hot food to take away leaves Class E even where the premises also has tables, as our note on hot food takeaway as a sui generis use explains
- Class F1 and Class F2 sit outside Class E, so a place of worship, a museum or a community hall is a change of use from a former shop, and the Class F2 local community uses threshold matters for small village shops
- Some permissions are granted for a specific use by condition, in which case the condition overrides the flexibility of the class
That last point catches people out constantly. A unit permitted in 2014 subject to a condition restricting it to retail use is limited by the condition, whatever the Use Classes Order now says.
Temporary use rights and what they do not cover
There is a common assumption that any use can run for 28 days a year without permission. The relevant right, in Part 4 of Schedule 2 to the General Permitted Development Order 2015, permits the temporary use of land for any purpose for a limited number of days in a calendar year, with a shorter allowance for certain uses. It applies to land, not to the use of buildings, which is why it covers a car boot sale on a yard and does not cover a pop-up shop inside a vacant unit.
Part 4 also contains rights for specific temporary purposes, including use for film-making, and the classes in Parts 3 and 4 have been amended repeatedly. Read the current text of the Order rather than a summary written before the last amendment, because several temporary rights introduced in recent years were time limited and have since lapsed.
For buildings, the reliable route is a time limited planning permission.
Applying for a time limited permission
Section 72(1)(b) of the 1990 Act allows a permission to be granted subject to a condition requiring the use to be discontinued, or works removed, at the end of a specified period. That is how meanwhile uses are normally consented where the class changes.
Keep the application simple and specific:
- Describe the development as a temporary change of use, with the period stated in the description as well as expected in a condition
- Set out the lawful use you are changing from, with the evidence for it
- Explain the temporary nature: the redevelopment programme, the lease length, the trial being run
- Deal with the impacts that the new use actually creates, which for most meanwhile uses means hours, noise, servicing and any extraction
- Confirm what reverts at the end, and what physical works would be removed
The Planning Practice Guidance on the use of planning conditions is clear that a temporary permission is appropriate where a trial run is needed or where the circumstances are in truth time limited. It is equally clear that a temporary permission should not be used to avoid dealing with a use that is in truth permanent. An officer who thinks the temporary label is a device will treat the application as if it were permanent.
Where the meanwhile use sits alongside a continuing use of part of the building, the description has to carry both, and getting a mixed use described correctly on the application form avoids an argument about what was actually permitted.
The lawful use you revert to
At the end of a temporary permission the use reverts to the last lawful use, and the right to resume that use survives the temporary permission. That is the legal position. The practical position is that you have to be able to prove what the last lawful use was.
Long vacancy creates a real risk here. Where a use has ceased and there is evidence of an intention never to resume it, together with a change in the physical character of the premises and the passage of time, a court may find the use abandoned, and there is then nothing to revert to. A unit stripped out, re-fronted and empty for eight years is more exposed than one mothballed for eighteen months.
The evidence to assemble, before rather than after:
- The planning history, including any permission and its conditions
- Rating list entries and descriptions over time
- Leases, licences and tenancy agreements showing the permitted user
- Dated photographs of the shopfront and interior, and historic street-level imagery
- Trading records, signage, utility accounts and staff records
- A statutory declaration from someone with first-hand knowledge, where the documents are thin
Where the position is doubtful, a lawful development certificate for the existing use under section 191 of the 1990 Act settles it. It costs a fee and a few months, and it is worth both if the reversion underpins the site's value.
Conditions with an expiry date
Expect a condition specifying the date or period, and read its wording carefully. A condition requiring the use to cease "on or before" a date is different from one running for a period "from the date of first occupation", and on a scheme that takes a year to fit out the difference is substantial.
Two other conditions recur. Personal conditions, tying the permission to a named occupier, are exceptional and the guidance discourages them, so resist one unless the alternative is refusal. And a condition requiring removal of works, such as a mezzanine or external seating, should specify what is to be removed and to what state the premises are to be returned.
Applying under section 73 to extend a temporary permission is possible and common. Plan for it if the meanwhile use is working, and apply well before expiry, because a use continuing after the date is unauthorised from that day.
Lease terms that decide the answer
Planning is often the easier half. The lease or licence has to permit the use, which means checking the permitted user clause, the alienation provisions on sharing or subletting, and any obligation on the tenant to obtain and comply with consents. A short licence keeps flexibility for the landlord and gives the occupier very little security, which suits a short meanwhile arrangement.
Two further points for landlords. A tenancy contracted out of security of tenure needs the statutory procedure followed properly, before the occupier goes in. And insurance and any superior lease or mortgage may restrict the uses permitted independently of planning.
Illustrative example: a vacant 120 m² unit in a secondary parade, let on a nine-month licence to a community repair workshop, with no planning application needed because both the previous and proposed uses fall within Class E, and a short note of the position kept on file. Details here are illustrative only.
Rates relief, and why it is a separate question
Empty property relief, retail relief and charitable relief are administered by the billing authority under the rating system and have nothing to do with whether the use is lawful. Empty property relief runs for a limited period after a property becomes vacant, longer for industrial premises, and occupying a unit for a meanwhile use will normally end it.
Charitable occupation attracts mandatory relief with discretionary relief on top, which is why meanwhile uses are so often charitable. Check the position with the billing authority before the occupation date, because the rates liability can exceed the rent on a short arrangement. Browse the PlanScope report library if you need a planning statement for a temporary change of use.
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.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need planning permission for a pop-up shop in a vacant unit?
Usually not, where the unit is lawfully in Class E and the proposed use also falls within Class E, because movement within a class is not development. You will need permission if the new use is sui generis, falls in Class F1 or F2, or if a condition on the existing permission restricts the unit to a particular use.
Does the 28 day rule allow a temporary use of a building?
No. The temporary use right in Part 4 of Schedule 2 to the General Permitted Development Order 2015 applies to the use of land for a limited number of days each year, not to the use of buildings. A pop-up inside a vacant unit is not covered, so a time limited planning permission is the route where the class changes.
How long can a temporary planning permission last?
There is no fixed maximum. The period is set by condition under section 72(1)(b) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 and should reflect the circumstances: a redevelopment programme, a lease length or a trial. Periods of one to three years are common for meanwhile uses, and an extension can be sought under section 73.
What use does the unit revert to when the temporary permission expires?
The last lawful use, and the right to resume it survives the temporary permission. The difficulty is proving what that use was after a long vacancy, because a use that has ceased with no intention to resume may be found abandoned. Assemble the planning history, rating entries, leases and dated photographs first.
Does a meanwhile use affect empty property rates relief?
Yes. Empty property relief applies for a limited period while a property is unoccupied, and occupying it for a meanwhile use will normally end that relief. Charitable occupation attracts mandatory relief with discretionary relief available on top. Rating is administered separately from planning, so check with the billing authority before the occupation date.
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.