How to get planning permission in London, step by step
To get planning permission in London you prepare scaled plans of the existing and proposed house, a location plan and the right fee, then apply to your borough council. Most householder applications have a statutory decision period of 8 weeks. This guide takes the steps in the order you meet them.
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Step one: check whether you need to apply
Many small projects need no application. A rear extension within the permitted development limits, or a garden room under the outbuilding rules, can go ahead without one, and a Lawful Development Certificate then gives you written proof. Our guide to whether you need a Lawful Development Certificate explains that route.
Conservation areas, listed buildings and Article 4 directions remove some of those rights, so check the address before you rely on them. If an application is needed, carry on to the plans.
Step two: the plans the council expects
A householder application usually needs the existing and proposed floor plans, elevations and sections, a location plan and a block plan. National guidance says plans and drawings must be drawn to an identified scale, and that plans must show the direction of north (planning practice guidance, Making an application).
The location plan has its own convention: the scale should typically be 1:1250 or 1:2500. Our location and block plans service prepares both.
Our starting fixed fee for householder planning drawings, covering the survey, the drawings, the design statement and the submission, is £745. The planning drawings page lists what goes into the package.
In our analysis of MHCLG planning application statistics, table PS2 (released 24 Sep 2026), 86% of householder decisions across the 33 London councils were grants, summing the four quarters from 2025 Q3 to 2026 Q2.
Step three: pay the application fee
The council charges its own fee, separate from ours, and it is set nationally. For a householder application to enlarge, improve or alter a single dwellinghouse, the fee in England from April 2026 is £548.
Pay it with the application so the council can validate it without a query.
Step four: what happens while the council decides
Once the application is valid, the council publicises it. Under article 15 of the Development Management Procedure Order 2015, that means a site notice displayed for not less than 21 days, or a notice to adjoining owners or occupiers. Neighbours and others can comment in that window.
The council then has 8 weeks, counted from the day after it receives the application, to decide a non-major application (article 34). An officer may ask for changes inside that period, and you can agree a longer one. Our guide to planning timescales covers what stretches it.
Step five: the decision, and what comes after
In our analysis of MHCLG planning application statistics, table PS2 (released 24 Sep 2026), 86% of householder decisions across the 33 London councils were grants, summing the four quarters from 2025 Q3 to 2026 Q2. That is a record of past decisions, not a forecast for your address.
If the council refuses, you can appeal for up to 12 weeks from the date on the decision letter (GOV.UK). Our planning appeal guide sets out the process.
Sources
Every figure on this page, where it comes from and a link to the original.
| Figure | Source | Link |
|---|---|---|
| £745 | DrawingsDirect starting fixed fee for householder planning drawings (survey, drawings, design statement, submission), from the published price list | drawingsdirect.co.uk |
| identified scale | Planning practice guidance, Making an application, paragraph 023: plans and drawings must be drawn to an identified scale and plans must show the direction of north (source wording: "must be drawn to an identified scale") | www.gov.uk |
| 1:1250 | Planning practice guidance, Making an application, paragraph 024: a location plan should typically be at a scale of 1:1250 or 1:2500 (source wording: "The scale should typically be 1:1250 or 1:2500") | www.gov.uk |
| £548 | Fees for planning applications in England from 1 April 2026 (MHCLG, SI 2012/2920 as annually indexed), category 6(1): householder application for the enlargement, improvement or alteration of a single dwellinghouse (source wording: £548) | assets.publishing.service.gov.uk |
| 8 weeks | DMPO 2015 art 34(2)(b): decision period for an application that is not major development (source wording: "8 weeks beginning with the day immediately following that on which the application is received") | www.legislation.gov.uk |
| 21 days | DMPO 2015 art 15(5): an application is publicised by site display for not less than 21 days or by notice to adjoining owners or occupiers (source wording: "for not less than 21 days") | www.legislation.gov.uk |
| 12 weeks | GOV.UK, Appeal a householder planning decision: you can appeal up to 12 weeks from the date on the decision letter (source wording: "you can appeal for up to 12 weeks from the date on the decision letter") | www.gov.uk |
| 86% | Our analysis of MHCLG planning application statistics, table PS2 (district open data table) (released 24 Sep 2026, quarters to 2026 Q2) | www.gov.uk |
Questions people ask
What plans do I need for planning permission in London?
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Photographs: Tim Green from Bradford (CC BY 2.0).
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