Scaffold licences and highway occupation during a dig
Your planning permission grants none of these. A basement dig in a terraced street usually needs three highway licences at once, plus bay suspensions and sometimes a footway closure.
Scaffolding on a public footway needs a licence from the highway authority under section 169 of the Highways Act 1980. A hoarding needs one under section 172. Depositing materials or making a temporary excavation in the street needs one under section 171, and a skip needs permission under section 139. None of those is planning permission, none of them is granted by your planning permission, and all four are issued by a different department from the one that determined your application.
On a basement dig in a terraced street you will probably need three of them at once, plus a parking bay suspension and possibly a temporary footway closure. The licences are routine. The programme risk is in the lead times.
Which licences the highway authority issues
| Consent | Statutory basis | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| Scaffold licence | Highways Act 1980, section 169 | Any scaffold standing on or over the highway |
| Hoarding licence | Highways Act 1980, section 172 | Site hoarding enclosing part of the footway |
| Materials and excavation licence | Highways Act 1980, section 171 | Material stored in the street, temporary openings |
| Skip permit | Highways Act 1980, section 139 | Builders skip on the carriageway or footway |
| Oversail or crane licence | Highways Act 1980, section 178 and local agreements | Crane jib or beam over the highway |
| Bay suspension | Traffic management order under the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 | Suspending parking bays for plant or deliveries |
| Temporary traffic regulation order | Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984, section 14 | Footway or carriageway closure, one-way working |
| Section 50 street works licence | New Roads and Street Works Act 1991 | Placing apparatus in the street |
In London the borough is normally the highway authority for local roads, with Transport for London responsible for the red route network, and a site fronting a red route deals with a different body on a different timetable. Outside London the county council or unitary authority holds the function, and the district council that granted your planning permission may have no role at all.
Hoardings, gantries and pedestrian routes
A hoarding licence is granted on a drawing. The authority wants the line of the hoarding, the width of footway remaining, the construction and height, the position of gates and how they open, lighting, signage, and the arrangements for pedestrians.
The width left for pedestrians is the controlling number. Authorities apply a minimum clear footway width and will refuse an arrangement that pushes people into the carriageway without a protected route. Where the available width does not work, the options are a pedestrian gantry under the scaffold, a temporary footway build-out into a suspended parking bay, or a footway closure with a signed diversion to the opposite side at a controlled crossing.
Gantries cost more and take longer to design and approve, so establish early whether the footway width leaves you a choice. Measure it on site rather than scaling it from a drawing, because street furniture, trees and build-outs eat the usable width.
Hoardings also attract conditions on appearance. Many authorities require the hoarding to be painted, kept clean and free of unauthorised advertising, and advertising on a hoarding is itself subject to advertisement consent.
Skips, plant and loading bays
A skip permit is site-specific and time-limited, usually with conditions on lighting, reflective markings, the name and telephone number of the owner displayed, and a prohibition on skips at junctions or on bends. Several authorities refuse skip permits on main roads entirely and expect a muck-away arrangement with a grab lorry instead.
For a basement, muck-away is the dominant logistics problem. A dig generating a continuous flow of spoil needs either a conveyor to a vehicle standing in a suspended bay, or a loading bay within the site boundary. Plan the vehicle standing position before the hoarding line is fixed, because the two decisions are linked and reversing them costs a redesign.
Concrete pours are the other pinch point. A pump standing in the carriageway on pour day needs a bay suspension and often a banksman arrangement agreed with the authority, and pour dates are not easily moved once the reinforcement is in.
Parking suspensions and their notice periods
Bay suspensions run on published notice periods, commonly in the range of five to ten working days for a standard suspension, with longer periods where signage has to be made and installed or where residents must be notified. The authority publishes both the period and the charge, usually per bay per day, and the charge on a controlled parking zone in a busy area is the item that most often blows a logistics budget.
Three habits avoid trouble. Apply for the whole expected duration rather than extending repeatedly, because extensions are processed as new applications in some authorities. Confirm who installs the suspension signage and when, since an unsigned suspension is unenforceable and a parked car will stop the delivery. And check whether the bays are resident permit bays, pay and display, or loading, because the consultation requirement differs.
Insurance and indemnity requirements
Every licence carries an indemnity. The licence holder indemnifies the authority against claims arising from the works and must hold public liability insurance to a level the authority specifies, commonly several million pounds, with the figure stated in the published licence conditions.
Check three details on the policy before applying. That the insured party is the entity named on the licence application, which is frequently the contractor rather than the building owner. That the cover extends to works on or over the public highway, which some policies exclude. And that the period covers the full licence duration including any overrun.
Authorities also carry out a condition survey of the highway before and after, or require one, and recover the cost of damage. Photograph the footway, kerb and carriageway before the hoarding goes up.
Costs, durations and renewals
Fees are set and published by each authority and are revised annually, so take them from the current published schedule rather than from a previous project. Scaffold and hoarding licences are typically issued for a fixed period, often three or six months, and renewed on application.
Illustrative example. A basement under a terraced house in a controlled parking zone runs a 20 week programme with a scaffold licence, a hoarding licence taking one metre of footway, a gantry, two suspended bays for muck-away and a skip permit for the fit-out phase only. The licences are applied for six weeks before the start, renewed once at week 14, and the bay suspensions are extended for the pour weeks. The sequence here is illustrative only.
Coordinating licences with the construction programme
Licences sit on the critical path and they are not within your control, so work backwards from the start date.
- Confirm who the highway authority is and download its current licence conditions and fee schedule
- Measure the available footway width on site and settle whether a gantry or a closure is needed
- Fix the hoarding line, the vehicle standing position and the muck-away route together
- Apply for the scaffold, hoarding and materials licences with the drawings, allowing the published determination period plus a contingency
- Apply for bay suspensions for the known pinch points, with the signage installation arranged
- Where a footway closure is needed, start the temporary traffic regulation order process first, because it carries the longest lead time
Planning conditions interact with all of this. A condition requiring a Construction Management Plan or a Construction Traffic Management Plan to be approved before commencement will expect the licences to be identified and the routes shown, so prepare them in the same exercise rather than twice. For a basement the Basement Impact Assessment will already contain much of the information the highway licences need.
Working at the boundary brings two further issues: a crane jib passing over a neighbour's airspace is a private law matter as well as a licensing one, covered in crane oversailing third party land, and protection of trees and structures on a tight site is set out in temporary works and tree protection on tight sites.
Erecting scaffolding or a hoarding on the highway without a licence is an offence, and the authority can require its removal at any point. This is general guidance, not legal advice. Licence types, notice periods and fees vary between authorities, so check the current published requirements with the highway authority before relying on a programme.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a licence for scaffolding on the pavement?
Yes. Section 169 of the Highways Act 1980 requires a licence from the highway authority for any scaffold standing on or over the highway. Erecting one without a licence is an offence and the authority can require its removal. Planning permission does not grant it, and the highway authority is often a different body from the planning authority.
Which licence covers a site hoarding?
Section 172 of the Highways Act 1980. The application is decided on a drawing showing the hoarding line, the clear footway width remaining, the construction and height, gate positions and how they open, lighting, signage and the pedestrian arrangements. Advertising on a hoarding is separately subject to advertisement consent.
How much notice does a parking bay suspension need?
Commonly five to ten working days for a standard suspension, with longer where signage has to be made and installed or residents notified. The period and the charge per bay per day are published by the authority. Apply for the whole expected duration, because some authorities treat an extension as a new application.
What insurance do highway licences require?
Public liability cover to a level the authority specifies, commonly several million pounds, with the figure in the published licence conditions, plus an indemnity to the authority. Check that the insured entity matches the licence applicant, that the policy covers works on or over the public highway, and that the period covers any overrun.
Is a construction management plan the same as a highway licence?
No. A construction management plan is usually required by planning condition and describes how the site will be run. The highway licences are separate statutory consents issued by the highway authority. The condition will often expect the licences to be identified, so prepare both in one exercise rather than twice.
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.