Understanding Pre-Application Meetings With The Council

Renovations and new builds can be a stressful process which starts with ensuring you receive planning permission for your project from your local planning department.

Even if you have had experience in submitting plans before, you could still miss out an important part of the planning process or not pay due regard to the local zoning laws. Or you might be submitting a unique design that has not been up before the Council before and you need to rethink your strategy for a successful submission.

Either way, there are times when you need to carry out a pre-meet with the Council planners and to support you in this endeavour you need to work with experienced planning permission consultants.

Is A Pre-Application Meeting Always Required?

This very much depends on what it is you are looking to do with the property or build on the land. Standard renovations such as extending out the back of the kitchen for example would not necessarily require a pre-meet. However, if the build is extensive or could impact on what is deemed a conservation or heritage area, then you may need pre-application advice. The other factor to consider is if you need to seek clarification on areas of planning control over and above the advice you would receive from your town planning consultants.

Town planners work closely with planning officers in the local councils, but the planning committee will be made up of elected members of the council. They will be steered by the advice given by the council officers. Your planning consultant will have a good understanding of the project you are putting forward and may decide that a pre-meet is a good idea so that you both are aware of any possible objections before you put in your plan.

Unique proposals or anything that is going to be different means the earlier you seek advice, the better. If you are looking to change the use of an existing residential building into a business property or run an outdoor activity centre from an urban area, you need to know what information to put in front of the planners to increase the chances of success. Also, it could also save you money if you are really trying to push the boat out and there is no way your plan will get through. On the other hand, it could help quicken up the process as you ensure you get all the necessary documentation and plans in place which helps to maximise the support from the Council.

Factors To Consider Before Asking For A Pre-Meet

One of the first things to consider is that any planning officer is not going to give you a guarantee your proposal will get through the planning committee. You need to ensure you have got all your details together, but be prepared to make adjustments or amendments. You also need to consider how far you would change your plans before they become too far removed from your dream project. You need to be open and honest with yourself as much as the people you are seeking advice from about this.

If objections are raised at the meeting you need to demonstrate when submitting the final proposal that you have evidenced how you took on board the advice and responded to it in the plans. Then ensure that you have arranged a date and time that is suitable for both you and your planning permission consultants who can accompany you to this meeting.

Ensure you have a discussion with your planning consultant before the meeting so that you are clear on what questions to ask and how to approach the Council. Having someone who can support you is important to direct any questions that you may not have thought of or might miss asking during the meeting. Some Councils will enforce a small charge for carrying out a meeting so ensure you check on their website beforehand.

Arranging The Meeting

Councils operate in slightly different ways when it comes to pre-advice meetings. Your starting point is going to be their website as several councils are now using online planning applications which also includes pre-application advice. They may offer a face-to-face meeting, an online meeting, or their pre- advice is in written format on the website.

You will need to give them preliminary information about the plan you are thinking of submitting along with a copy of the title. A simple plan or sketch with a short description should suffice. Check with your planning consultant before sending anything across and remember they are there to support you through every step of this process.

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