Planning Constraints ReportsFrom £19
How much does a planning constraints report cost in London?
A planning constraints report for a London address costs £19, with no VAT charged. It checks the property against government planning data for conservation areas, Article 4 directions, listed buildings, flood zones and more, and tells you in plain English what each result means for an extension or a loft, and what the search cannot tell you.
The short answer: a small fee for a first look
Our planning constraints report costs £19. It gives you a one-page result for your address from the national planning datasets, with conservation area, listed building and Article 4 results each marked found or not found, the flood zone and other environmental designations that apply, and a plain-English note on what each means for extensions and lofts.
A clear statement of what the search cannot tell you comes with it, and a recommended next step for your project. It is built to be bought before a purchase or before you spend on drawings, when a small answer saves a large one.
- Check the datasets
Your address is checked against the national planning datasets.
- Mark each result
Conservation area, listed building and Article 4 are marked found or not found.
- Explain it
A plain-English note says what each result means for extensions and lofts.
- Say what is missing
A statement sets out what the search cannot tell you, and the next step.
What the data is, and what it is not
The datasets come from the government's Planning Data platform. Its datasets page lists 55 geography datasets, including Article 4 direction area, conservation area, flood risk zone, listed building and green belt.
The same page carries a warning we repeat on every report: the data may be incomplete and not yet cover all of England. A result of not found means not found in the data, not proven absent. That is why the report states what the search cannot tell you, and why we recommend confirming anything that matters with the council.
Why the results matter
Government guidance says that permitted development rights can be removed by the local planning authority, either by means of a condition on a planning permission, or by means of an article 4 direction. A house with its rights removed needs an application for work a neighbouring house may do without one.
A listing is wider than most people expect. For all grades, unless the list entry says otherwise, the listing covers the entire building, internal and external. And trees in a conservation area need six weeks' notice to the council before certain work. The report flags the results that bring these in.
What to do after it
If the report finds nothing, a measured survey and drawings are the next step; our post on feasibility studies goes further, testing your ideas against the rules. If it finds a constraint, the post on heritage statements or listed building consent explains the cost of working around it.
Buying a house is the other moment this pays for itself: our pre-purchase planning report goes further into history and rights. The report is on the planning constraints report page.
Sources
Every figure in this article, where it comes from and a link to the original.
- the data may be incomplete and not yet cover all of England: Planning Data platform, Datasets page: (source wording: "The data may be incomplete and not yet cover all of England"). www.planning.data.gov.uk
- 55: Planning Data platform, Datasets page, Geography group (source wording: "There are 55 results in Geography", including Article 4 direction area, Conservation area, Flood risk zone, Listed building, Green belt). www.planning.data.gov.uk
- either by means of a condition on a planning permission, or by means of an article 4 direction: PPG When is permission required?, para 020: (source wording: "Permitted development rights can be removed by the local planning authority, either by means of a condition on a planning permission, or by means of an article 4 direction"). www.gov.uk
- internal and external: PPG Historic environment, para 044: for all grades unless the list entry says otherwise (source wording: "the listing status covers the entire building, internal and external"). www.gov.uk
- six weeks: PPG Tree Preservation Orders and trees in conservation areas, para 116: (source wording: "6 weeks before carrying out certain work on such trees"). www.gov.uk
Questions people ask
Is it a legal search?
Do I pay VAT on your fee?
Does it include planning history?
What if it says not found?
Photographs: Ben Hadfield (Unsplash License); Brett Wharton (Unsplash License).
Planning Constraints Reports: a fixed fee from £19
Read more on the planning constraints reports service page, or send your address below and we reply within one working day.
Planning Constraints Reports
from £19
Every price is the full fixed fee you pay. No VAT is charged. Council application fees are paid to the council separately.
What you get
- A one-page result for your address from the national planning datasets
- Conservation area, listed building and Article 4 results, each marked found or not found
- Flood zone and other environmental designations that apply
- A plain-English note of what each result means for extensions and lofts
- A clear statement of what the search cannot tell you