PP mandatory docos. Are there templates?

[miljee]

The planning portal PP application has, so far, mainly been yes/no tick boxes.

I am at 'Mandatory documents'.

I have to do an 'Affordable Housing Statement', my option being whether I post it or attach a file. Rather than 'do' it (mandatory, see?). I was expecting another yes/no form, not a freestyle 'make a statement'!

What on earth is this statement supposed to say?
'My home garage conversion won't have an affordable housing component'??!

Ditto 'Biodiversity Report and Survey'
'Nah, no crested newts living under MY existing slab!'

Surely there must be a templated form where you can just put that there's no need for either in this type of PP request? Or somewhere that tells me what they expect to see in those 'documents'?

A part of me wonders if I've cocked up earlier in the form- though I can't see where I've been asked whether this is a domestic or commercial development!- in that I've been asked what the opening hours of the development will be, how many employees it will have and how I will dispose of hazardous waste. What, for a domestic garage conversion into a living room? Admittedly I've successfully navigated through those (yes/no tick boxes) with a 'no' and been permitted to move on but why doesn't an interactive site not filter out that irrelevant nonsense?

Anyone any ideas??

 

[^woody^]

You wont need to provide any of those documents for a garage conversion.

You need to check on your council's planning web pages, where it will detail what documents are required for the various application types

 

[tony1851]

I've never submitted an on-line application, preferring to use proper forms instead.
However, reading some of the questions you quoted,I wonder if you've got the right form. In the real world of paper forms, there are two types of form; 'Householder Planning Applications' and 'Planning Applications', the latter seemingly for anything that isn't householder. The questions you mentioned look suspiciously like the 'normal' (ie non-householder) form.
I would check again that you're filling in the right form.

 

[miljee]

Thanks both!

I am actually thinking I may get the paper forms from the local Council Website- the forms I'm trawling through seem to apply to building Olympic stadiums and domestic garage conversions alike! Looking at the 'View Applications' on the council site, I can only see, in the 'additional documentation supplied' for similar conversions, the Biodiversity Form (which is a paper tick box exercise) and one about parking, if one of your spots is 'on road'. Sadly I can't find the actual form on the council site to download. I am thinking of printing someone else's completed one off and photo shopping their answers out! But they're not debating Affordable Housing or similar!

Incidentally, all PP applications re garage conversions seem to be 'FULL' as in stamped with a series of numbers/FULL so I think I do need the kit'n'caboodle one, not the Householder one.

I have discovered that I can actually talk to the planning officer between 11-1 weekdays without forking out the £48 'pre-planning help' fee (which isn't even a 'check my application before I submit it' service!!).

Can't I just get on with converting the bleddy thing? I could have built it myself in the time it's taken me to trawl through all the 'official' websites!

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

Do you even need permission? The majority of conversions don't unless the dwelling has had restrictions placed upon it.

As mentioned I would hazard you clicked on the wrong form or sumink, the Portal is not the most user friendly of places if you're not familiar with planning applications etc.

 

[^woody^]

It does not matter if the online forms or paper forms are used, there is still a requirement to supply the relevant national or local supplementary information, for the application to be valid

 

[garyo]

I submitted on line and ended up including lots of, essentially blank, documents with one-liner content like "the front extension/porch will not create any jobs locally"

This was two years ago, and the local planning dept said the portal is OTT for small domestic works. They may have tried to streamline it since...

As an aside, it'd have been quicker to submit the old school way too. My planning dept logged in to the portal once per week to print everything off and then dump it in the same in-tray as the incoming postal applications!

Gary

 

[jeds]

You are on the wrong type of application. You chose full planning permission. What you should have chosen was householder planning permission.

 

[miljee]

Quote from the council's Planning page:
"Do I need Planning Permission?

If you want to build an extension to your property or do other work to your home, or if you want to expand your business or change the use of your premises, you may need to apply for planning permission. Applications for a change of use need to be submitted on a Full Planning Permission application form.
Some extensions, improvements and alterations, particularly to houses, can often be carried out without the need for planning permission. This is known as permitted development.

In some cases your permitted development rights may have been removed. {THEY HAVE IN OUR ESTATE} If you do not know if your permitted development rights have been removed, or are unsure if you need planning permission, please contact us."

I then went through the Q&A section on the Planning Portal, called 'Do you know what sort of PP you need?'- it spat out that I need Full Planning Permission (remember, it knows who your local authority are by this stage of the application!); so I do actually need Full, not Householder, mad though it sounds.

I am calling the Planning officer on Friday when I get time, to try and clarify what, exactly, I have to do and will use just paper forms!

 

[DevilDamo]

To summarise... garage conversions can normally be carried out under Permitted Development (i.e. not requiring a planning application). Your Local Planning Authority will be able to check/confirm this for you. If you need to apply for planning, you can do this online using the "householder" forms. In some instances, the documents required at the end of the Planning Portal process are not required. If you feel this is the case, just upload a blank sheet to the link. Your LPA will have information on their validation lists. If they have any queries, you will be contacted and your application will not be validated until you have provided the necessary information.

You will need to submit a Building Regulation application, which can either be done via a Building Notice (common for a garage conversion) or a Full Plans application.

 

[jeds]

Just start again and choose householder planning application. Trust me. It will be fine and all those annoying questions about hazardous waste, numbers of employees biodiversity and geological conservation, etc, etc will disappear.

 

[miljee]

You see, the reason I feel I will need Full PP is that all the other garage conversions on my estate, when you 'view' them on the council PP area online, have the council's stamp with the (project's) 'reference number/FULLS' handwritten written next to them. This seriously implies to me that they've been considered through Full PP, not Householder.

I expect that after a chat with the Planning Officer hopefully on Friday I will be 'the wiser'. I hadn't realised I'd be 'allowed' to talk to him without paying the council £48 a pop- and may yet find he won't help without a fee! However, I feel sure my enquiry is so simple he couldn't charge, being:

What PP do I need?
What forms must I submit?
Where can I find them?

 

[^woody^]

You are getting confused

There are two types of planning application - outline and full. That is why you see all these other applications recorded as "Full"

Then, the "full" applications are categorised into the types- householder, commercial, etc

So you will be making a full application of the householder category

Then as part of that householder application, you need to check what additional documents are needed. I would suspect that all you need are scale plans and a location plan

 

[jeds]

There's no difference between planning approval for householder or commercial - both are full planning. It's only the forms that change. The FULL you refer to is simply to distinguish between full or outline planning. A householder application is a full planning permission but the forms are simpler. For the very reasons you have encountered - most of the questions on the long forms are not applicable to householder stuff. Use the householder forms - it won't make any difference to your approval.

Crossed in the post!

 

[miljee]

Ah, I see. I thought the FULL meant Full PP, not 'as opposed to Outline PP'. I did think Householder was only OK if development rights were 'permitted'.

I am going to try the planing Portal again with Householder and see what it gives me, ie if I still have to state the opening hours of my new garage conversion