Post Decision Amendments

Proposed changes to approved drawings

Development must be carried out strictly in accordance with that shown on the plans which form part of the planning permission. The Council, however, recognise that either before development commences, or even during construction, the applicant may wish to make changes to that approved. This can be dealt with in the following ways:

Non-Material Amendment

Process

In these circumstances the applicant should apply for a Non-Material Amendment together with an amended plan (site plan, elevation and/or floor plan as applicable) which clearly shows the proposed alterations. The Council will then consider if the proposed alterations are of such significance to require the submission of a fresh application or whether they can be considered as "a minor amendment to the permission".

There is now a nationally set charge for the consideration of such requests. The charges can be found on the Planning Fees page. The fee must be submitted together with the application form together with an amendment plan (site plan, elevation and/or floor plan as applicable) which clearly shows the proposed alterations. 

The application can be submitted alongside the plans and fee using the Planning Portal. The application form can also be found in 1APP Application forms.

The decision of whether an alteration can be accepted as a minor amendment is made by planning officers under delegated authority. There is no third party notification or opportunity to comment on such requests. The Council will however make available any plans showing approved alterations on its website once a decision has been made (as well as the Council's confirmation letter).

The Council will seek to reply to such requests within 28 days of receipt.

What the Council will accept as a minor amendment

Only very minor alterations to proposals will be accepted as an amendment to a planning permission. In assessing a request for approval of changes a key consideration will be, if those changes are accepted, without the need for the submission of a fresh application, will any third parties' interests be reasonably prejudiced (in that they have not been given the opportunity to comment on these alterations).

It is extremely unlikely that the following types of alterations would be acceptable :

• proposals which significantly increase the size, height or volume of an extension. In assessing whether the alteration is significant this will be done on a case by case basis particularly having regard to how close the extension is to the boundary and its likely impact on neighbouring properties. Increases in size of over 0.3 m to domestic extensions are very unlikely to be acceptable
• alterations which extend a proposal beyond the Council's adopted standards, or conflict with Government Guidance
• changes to window and door openings where they result in the overlooking of adjoining properties either where it did not exist before or would be made materially worse
• changes to window and door openings where they would require the imposition of a condition to ensure the retention of obscure glazing to make them acceptable
• alteration of a flat roof to a pitched roof (whether mono pitch, hip or gable)
• relocating the position of a building
• alterations to the site area
• where amendments would conflict with the requirements of a planning condition which has been imposed on the consent (eg removing under floor voids which may be required for flooding)
• amendments which would re-instate a feature which was objected to, and removed, as part of the original application
• where cumulative minor amendments would result in a materially different scheme to that originally approved
• any changes to ground level
• any changes which would affect existing trees or landscape features
• amendments which would fail to preserve or enhance the character of a Conservation Area
• amendments that would affect the historic fabric or setting of a listed building

The following alterations however are often accepted as minor alterations to permission:

• reductions in overall size or height of an extension unless this results in a significant change in the appearance of the proposal
• alterations to precise details of bricks and tiles specified in the application (unless it would have a significant material impact on the external appearance)
• the processing of requests for alterations to approved plans are normally dealt with by the planning officer who processed the original application. His/her contact details were set out on the original letter notifying third parties of the receipt of the application. The case officer can also be contacted via Customer Services

Material Amendments

Sometimes applicants wish to amend a planning proposal after it has been approved. This can be dealt with in the following ways:

S73 Determination/Removal or Varying of a Condition

This will seek to vary the planning condition which lists the approved plans. These applications will deal with changes that are more substantial to a planning permission ie, re-positioning of an approved dwelling.

View our further guidance.

Revised Planning Application 

For significant changes to an approved development, a new planning application will be required.

The applicant must contact the case officer at an early stage to discuss any changes proposed. Any works undertaken without the benefit of approval may be the subject of planning enforcement action if subsequently deemed to be unacceptable.

The final decision on how an amendment following planning permission will be dealt with will rest with the Planning Officer.