New Permitted Development Rules for Single Storey Extensions

UNDER NEW permitted development rules, homeowners in terraced and semi-detached homes will be able to put single storey extensions of up to six metres at the rear of their properties, without needing to obtain planning permission. Those in detached homes will be able to extend by up to eight metres.

Kit Malthouse, Housing Minister

Kit Malthouse, housing minister, said: “These measures will help families extend their properties without battling through time-consuming red tape.” However, Cllr Martin Tett, planning spokesperson for the Local Government Association (LGA), expressed concerns about undermining local planning departments.

New Permitted Development Rules

According to the National Federation of Builders (NFB), the greatest barrier to building the right homes in the right places is the planning system, where 42% of minor residential planning applications and 75% of major are subject to extension of time requests, environmental impact assessments or performance agreements. The NFB has also revealed that since 2009, local communities have seen the size of housing sites increase by 17%.

Richard Beresford, chief executive of the NFB, said: “We welcome changes to permitted development allowing existing homes to be more easily extended. This decision will help growing families stay in their homes and build for their future, instead of having to move out of town to find appropriate housing.”

Rico Wojtulewicz, head of housing and planning policy for the House Builders Association (HBA), said: “Despite developers agreeing to pay more for it, the planning process remains complicated, expensive and unpredictable. This permitted development reform with give planners more time to grant permissions for the right homes in the right places and encourage them to focus on allocating more small sites within existing communities.”