Part 11 Class B: prior approval for demolition
Demolition is development. Class B gives a permitted right subject to prior approval of method and restoration, and it stops at the conservation area boundary.
Demolition prior approval catches developers out because demolition is development. Section 55 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 includes demolition within building operations, so pulling a building down is regulated in the same way as putting one up. What makes it feel unregulated is that most demolition is covered either by a ministerial direction taking small structures and means of enclosure outside the definition, or by the permitted development right in Part 11 of the General Permitted Development Order.
Class B of that Part is the one that matters on a redevelopment site, and it works differently from an ordinary permitted development right. It permits the demolition, then requires you to ask the council whether it wants to approve the method and the restoration of the site.
What Class B covers, and what it does not
The right applies to building operations consisting of demolition. It does not answer the question of whether something should be demolished, and the council has no power under it to say no on those grounds.
The exclusions are where the risk sits.
A listed building is outside the right entirely. Demolition needs listed building consent, and that includes partial demolition of a curtilage listed structure.
An unlisted building in a conservation area is outside it too. Since the reforms that moved conservation area consent into the planning system, demolition of a building in a conservation area is relevant demolition requiring planning permission, and carrying it out without permission is a criminal offence rather than a matter for an enforcement notice.
Scheduled monuments have their own regime under the ancient monuments legislation, and scheduled monument consent comes from the Secretary of State rather than the council.
There are also exclusions relating to buildings rendered unsafe or uninhabitable by the action or inaction of the owner, which is aimed squarely at deliberate neglect.
Check all of these before programming anything. Designations are public, they take an hour to establish, and the consequence of missing one is criminal liability rather than a planning refusal.
The two prior approval matters
The council's power under Class B is confined to the method of demolition and any proposed restoration of the site. That is a narrow remit and it is worth understanding, because both applicants and objectors routinely misunderstand it.
Method covers how the building comes down. Sequencing, plant, whether it is machine demolition or hand demolition, protection of adjoining structures and highways, dust and noise control, hours of working, wheel washing and traffic routing.
Restoration covers what the site looks like afterwards. Levels, capping, hoarding or fencing, treatment of exposed party walls, drainage of the cleared site, and how it will be maintained while it sits empty.
Neither of those is about the loss of the building. An objection saying the building is locally valued has nowhere to land on a Class B application.
The procedure
- Establish that the building is within the right, with designations checked and evidence retained.
- Apply to the local planning authority for a determination as to whether prior approval is required for the method of demolition and restoration, with a written method statement, a site plan and details of restoration.
- Display a site notice as required by the conditions attached to the class, and keep it displayed and photographed.
- Wait for the council's response for the period the Order specifies. If it says prior approval is not required, or does not respond in time, the demolition may proceed in accordance with the details given.
- If prior approval is required, provide what is asked for and carry out the works in accordance with the approved details.
Two practical notes. The details you submit are the details you are bound by, so a method statement written loosely by a contractor's office is a poor thing to be held to. And the site notice condition is not a formality: it is a condition of the right, and failing to comply with it means the works are not permitted development.
The parallel duties nobody schedules
The planning side is usually the fastest part of the process. What sets the programme is everything else.
Section 80 of the Building Act 1984 requires notice to the council before demolishing a building, and the authority may respond with a notice imposing requirements about shoring, weatherproofing adjoining buildings, sealing sewers and disconnecting services. That period runs longer than the planning one and cannot be compressed.
Asbestos comes next. A refurbishment and demolition survey is needed before work starts, and licensed removal has its own notification periods to the Health and Safety Executive. Finding asbestos in a survey commissioned two weeks before the programmed start is the single most common cause of delay on a small demolition.
The Party Wall etc. Act 1996 applies where a shared wall or an adjoining structure is affected, and notice periods run from one to two months depending on the section relied on. Utilities need to confirm disconnection in writing rather than by telephone. And the construction design and management regulations apply from the outset, with duty holders appointed and a construction phase plan in place.
Where the building has some value left in it
Two arguments regularly delay a demolition that everyone assumed was straightforward.
The first is local designation. A building on a council's local heritage list is not statutorily protected, but its loss is a material consideration in any application for what replaces it, and a council that cannot stop the demolition can and will weigh the loss in the redevelopment decision. Where a building is locally listed, expect a request for recording before it comes down.
The second is embodied carbon. Authorities with circular economy or retrofit-first policies now ask applicants to justify demolition against refurbishment, and in London that expectation is written into policy for larger schemes. The argument is won with structural survey evidence and a costed comparison, not with an assertion that the building is beyond repair.
Neither of these bites on a Class B application, because the council's remit there is confined to method and restoration. Both of them bite hard on the permission for the replacement building, which is the one you actually need.
What to submit, and where the documents overlap
A method statement is the core of a Class B submission. It should be site specific, name the plant, describe the sequence, and set out dust suppression, noise control and protection of the highway and neighbouring buildings.
Alongside it, three documents are worth preparing whether or not the council asks. A Construction Management Plan covering hours, deliveries, dust, noise and neighbour liaison. A Construction Traffic Management Plan where the site is on a constrained street or near a school. And a Site Waste Management Plan recording what arises and where it goes.
Where the building has any reuse value, a Pre-redevelopment Audit identifying materials and components that can be recovered is increasingly asked for by authorities with circular economy policies, and in London it is a routine requirement for larger schemes.
Sequence matters. Demolition under Class B does not carry planning permission for whatever replaces the building, and a cleared site with no permission is a liability. Where the redevelopment is the point, get the permission for the new building first, then demolish. There is a separate right in Part 20 covering demolition and rebuilding for residential development, and it is a different animal with different tests.
This is general guidance rather than legal advice. Check the position with your local planning authority or a qualified professional before relying on it, and confirm the current wording of Part 11 on legislation.gov.uk. To see which documents a redevelopment site is likely to need, check the constraints on a site.
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Frequently asked questions
Does demolition always need planning permission?
No. Demolition is development, but much of it is either taken outside the definition by a ministerial direction covering small structures and means of enclosure, or permitted by Part 11 of the General Permitted Development Order subject to prior approval. The exceptions are what matter: listed buildings, scheduled monuments and unlisted buildings in conservation areas are all dealt with separately.
What can the council consider on a Class B prior approval?
Only the method of demolition and any proposed restoration of the site. It cannot consider whether the building should be demolished, the merits of what replaces it, or the loss of the building itself. Submissions that argue about heritage merit on a Class B application are misdirected, which is why councils in conservation areas rely on the separate permission requirement instead.
How long does the process take?
The application to determine whether prior approval is required is decided within a short statutory period, and where the council does not respond within it the works may proceed in accordance with what was submitted. Plan for the parallel Building Act notice as well, which runs on a longer period, so the practical lead time is set by that rather than by the planning side.
Can I demolish a building in a conservation area under Class B?
No. Demolition of an unlisted building in a conservation area is relevant demolition requiring planning permission, and carrying it out without permission is a criminal offence. The same applies to demolition of a listed building, which needs listed building consent. Establish the designation status before anything is programmed.
What else do I need before the machine arrives?
A refurbishment and demolition asbestos survey and a plan for licensed removal where asbestos is present. Notice under section 80 of the Building Act 1984 to the council's building control service. Party wall notices where a shared structure is affected. Disconnection confirmations from the utilities. And appointment of the duty holders required by the construction design and management regulations.
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.