Porch planning permission and building regulations in London
A porch needs no planning permission if its ground area is no more than 3 square metres, no part is over 3 metres high and none is within 2 metres of a boundary with a highway. Building regulations treat porches separately and exempt some ground-level porches up to 30m2.
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Three tests a porch must pass
Class D of Part 1, Schedule 2 of the General Permitted Development Order lays down the limits for a porch built outside an external door (GPDO 2015). Fail any one and you need to apply.
The ground area, measured externally, must not exceed 3 square metres. No part of the porch may be more than 3 metres above ground level. And it must not stand within 2 metres of any boundary of the curtilage that adjoins a highway.
The 2 metre rule catches front porches on short drives
If your house sits close to the pavement and the front door is less than 2 metres from the boundary with the road, a porch in front of it cannot rely on permitted development, however small it is. Measure from the front boundary, not from the house wall to the kerb.
In that case a householder application is the route. The council has 8 weeks from the day after receipt to decide a non-major application, extendable by written agreement (DMPO 2015, article 34(2)(b)).
The council has 8 weeks from the day after receipt to decide a non-major application, extendable by written agreement (DMPO 2015, article 34(2)(b)).
Do building regulations apply to a porch?
Schedule 2 of the Building Regulations 2010 exempts certain small ground-level additions of up to 30m2, and a porch commonly falls within that, if its conditions are met (Building Regulations 2010, Schedule 2). Even when it is exempt, its glazing must meet Part K and any electrics connected to the house must meet Part P (regulation 9(3)).
The energy efficiency rules stay off only while a wall, door or window separates the porch from the house and the heating is not extended into it (regulation 21(4)). Knock through into the hall without replacing the door and those rules apply. Our guide to building regulations approval sets out the thresholds.
Where a conservation area or listing changes the answer
Permitted development can be removed by an Article 4 direction, and a listed house needs listed building consent for changes that affect its character. Check both before you design. Our Article 4 direction entry explains how a council removes the right, and the permitted development entry sets out the wider rules.
Getting a porch drawn
A porch application needs a block plan, plans and elevations, and a materials note. Our planning drawings service prepares those for householders, and we can first advise whether a certificate of lawful development is the safer route.
Sources
Every figure on this page, where it comes from and a link to the original.
| Figure | Source | Link |
|---|---|---|
| 3sqm | GPDO 2015 Sch 2 Pt 1 Class D.1(b): porch ground area (measured externally) must not exceed 3 square metres (source wording: 3 square metres) | www.legislation.gov.uk |
| 3m | GPDO 2015 Sch 2 Pt 1 Class D.1(c): porch no part more than 3 metres above ground level (source wording: 3 metres) | www.legislation.gov.uk |
| 2m | GPDO 2015 Sch 2 Pt 1 Class D.1(d): porch not permitted within 2 metres of any boundary of the curtilage with a highway (source wording: 2 metres) | www.legislation.gov.uk |
| 30 | Building Regulations 2010 Sch 2 exemption: detached single-storey building not exceeding 30 m2, no sleeping accommodation, at least one metre from boundary or substantially non-combustible; ground-floor extension up to 30 m2 also exempt (source wording: 30m2) | www.legislation.gov.uk |
| 8 | DMPO 2015 art 34(2)(b): 8 weeks from day after receipt for non-major applications, extendable by written agreement (source wording: 8 weeks) | www.legislation.gov.uk |