We have received several enquiries recently posing this question. It’s a common assumption that ‘outline planning’ and ‘permission in principle’ are one and the same, particularly in relation to new build housing.
We’ve prepared this short article to provide a high-level overview of the difference between outline planning and permission in principle, to help you to consider which route might be the most suitable for your project.
Permission in Principle: The Basics
Permission in principle is only applicable to developments with the following features:
- 1 – 9 dwellings
- a total development of under 1,000 square metres
- a site of under 1 hectare
- some non-residential use may be included, but housing must occupy the majority of the floorspace and the non-residential use must be compatible with the housing, e.g. retail, office space, community use.
The permission in principle route is split into two stages:
- Stage 1 (permission in principle stage) establishes whether the site is suitable for a proposed development in principle
- Stage 2 (technical details consent) is where the technical details of a proposed development are assessed. This consent must be obtained in writing by the local planning authority before development can proceed.
Once permission in principle has been granted, you will have three years in which to apply for ‘technical details consent’ (five years where permission is granted through allocation on a brownfield land register). These timescales can be varied by the local planning authority, but they must provide justification for doing so.
Outline Planning: The Basics
Outline planning permission is very similar to permission in principle. However, it’s been around for much longer and is not limited to small housing developments. It consists of the following stages:
- Stage 1 (outline planning consent) – as with permission in principle, this establishes whether a proposal will be accepted in principle.
- Stage 2 (reserved matters) – also, as with permission in principle, this is the stage in which the detailed design of a scheme is submitted for approval. Again, this approval must be obtained in writing from the local planning authority prior to the development being undertaken.
Pros and Cons of Outline Planning and Permission In Principle
The permission in principle consent route is an alternative way of obtaining planning permission for small-scale housing-led development which separates the consideration of matters of principle for proposed development from the technical detail of the development. The permission in principle consent route has 2 stages: the first stage (or permission in principle stage) establishes whether a site is suitable in-principle and the second (‘technical details consent’) stage is when the detailed development proposals are assessed.
The local planning authority ought to determine applications for Permission in Principle within five weeks of receipt of an application, assuming an application is complete and valid. There is potential that a Permission In Principle could be submitted and determined on the basis of ‘less’ information being provided ‘up front’, however due to the reduced level of information required for such an application, there is a risk that local planning authorities could be more cautious when determining whether a proposed development might be acceptable in principle.
In practice, permission in principle is only suitable for a fairly limited range of developments.
Which planning route is right me?
Please get in touch via our contact page and we will seek to advise you on the potential routes that are available to help progress your development proposals, based on your site and development proposals. You can also see our other services here and a selection of the projects we have worked on here.