Your permission is granted, but its decision notice lists conditions that must be cleared before work begins. We read each one, prepare the drawings and details it asks for, and submit the request to your council.
Photo: Ruth Sharville, BY-SA 2.0
Discharge of planning conditions, per pack of up to 3 conditions
Fixed in writing after a free assessment of your property. Council planning fees are separate.
Every price is the total you pay. Checked 24 October 2026.
A decision notice is two documents in one: the permission, and a list of conditions. Some conditions apply forever, such as keeping a side window obscure-glazed. Others are pre-commencement conditions, which say that no work may begin until the council has approved a specific item. Builders who start anyway put the whole permission at risk.
In London homes the usual items are brick and roof tile samples, a construction method statement for tight terraced streets, a drainage or soakaway plan, tree protection drawings and a landscaping scheme. Each needs its own drawing or document, and each has to match what the condition wording asks for, not what you assume it means.
We start by reading the condition number by number. Some turn out to be satisfied by details already on the approved drawings. Some can be dealt with on the same form as a later condition. A few, where the wording is badly drafted, are worth discussing with the case officer before we submit anything.
If a condition looks unreasonable, there are routes to vary or remove it. We say so rather than quietly preparing details you should not have to give.
The clock starts when the council receives a complete request, so we check the pack before it goes.
Most householder conditions ask for one of five things, and the details are usually short.
| Condition | What the council wants | What we send |
|---|---|---|
| Materials | Match with the existing house | Sample list, photographs and a facing material schedule |
| Construction method | Protect neighbours and the street | A short statement on hours, deliveries and dust |
| Drainage | No increase in surface water | A drainage plan with soakaway or attenuation sizing |
| Tree protection | Roots and canopies kept safe | A plan marking fencing, with the arboriculturist's report if one exists |
| Obscure glazing | Neighbour privacy kept | Elevations showing the pane level and fixing |
Tree reports and drainage design for larger schemes may need a specialist, whom we name before quoting.
Each figure links to the legislation or guidance it comes from.
A council has 8 weeks, starting the day after it receives your request, to give notice of its decision on details submitted to discharge a condition.
Source: legislation.gov.uk, Development Management Procedure Order 2015, article 27(2)The 8-week period can be extended if you and the council agree a longer period in writing.
Source: legislation.gov.uk, Development Management Procedure Order 2015, article 27A fee has to be paid each time you ask for written confirmation of compliance, as if it were the first such request (paragraph 026).
Source: GOV.UK, Fees for planning applications, paragraph 026Planning fees rise every 1 April in line with the Consumer Prices Index of the previous September, capped at 10%.
Source: GOV.UK, Fees for planning applicationsSection 78 gives a right of appeal when a council refuses an application or grants it subject to conditions, and an appeal against a householder refusal runs for up to 12 weeks.
Source: GOV.UK, Appeal a householder planning decision: how long you have to appealLondon councils decided 24,758 householder applications in the year to March 2026.
Source: GOV.UK, Planning applications statistics (PS2)Tell us about your project and get a fixed, no-obligation quote back within one working day. If you don't need planning permission at all, we'll tell you that too — for free.
Not if they are pre-commencement conditions. Starting early means the work may be unlawful and exposed to enforcement. Check the wording: some conditions bind only before occupation or before a later stage, and those can be dealt with while you build.
The £365 covers a pack of up to 3 conditions: the drawings and details they ask for, and the submission. The council fee is separate and paid to the council. Larger numbers of conditions are quoted by the pack.
It sends reasons. Usually the fix is a revised sample or a clearer drawing, and we resubmit. The fee guidance says a new fee is due each time you ask again, so we try to get the pack right first time.
Yes. Send the decision notice and approved drawings. We prepare the extra details the conditions ask for and check them against the drawings on file. Where the approved drawings are unclear, we ask the council before we draw.
Only if the condition or the council's tree officer asks for one. For a tree in your garden or next door within a few metres of the work, it often does. We tell you after reading the notice and, if needed, bring in a partner arboriculturist.
The statutory period is 8 weeks from the day after receipt. London councils often finish earlier on simple items such as materials, but a drainage or tree matter can take the full period. Plan the builder's start accordingly.
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