Planning Permission – Holding On For Heroes
Installation Eye and Fix Radio have partnered to bring you planning permission advice to make you the hero your customers have been holding on for to help them navigate obstacles and save money.
With 83% of homeowners relying on savings to fund renovations, planning confusion could leave them out of pocket unless you step up to guide them – so here is our planning permission checklist.
First a few facts
- Larger projects such as extensions rose 17% in 2025.
- 51% of homeowners renovated their homes in 2024.
- 83% of homeowners continue to rely on savings to fund their renovations.
As the UK heads into the spring build rush, homeowners are gearing up for extensions, loft conversions and garden makeovers. But planning rules still catch people out and one wrong step can mean delays and a bigger bill than you bargained for.
Fix Radio, is the UK’s largest national trade radio station reaching over 833,000 weekly listeners and one in four UK trades professionals. The station has called on Installation Eye to help it spread the warning that if you or your customers don’t check what is allowed before work starts, you could be forced to change plans halfway through a job.
Checklist
Check if you actually need planning permission as some jobs fall under permitted development but only if you meet strict limits. Check the Planning Portal or your local council’s website before starting. If in doubt, you can apply for a Lawful Development Certificate to get written confirmation before work begins.
Don’t ignore what’s already been done to the house as previous extensions, loft conversions, conservatories or even removed structures can affect what you are allowed to do next. Check a property’s planning history on your local council website.
Watch out for local rules that change everything. For example, if the home is in a conservation area, is listed, or has extra planning conditions on it, the usual permitted development rules can be stripped back or removed altogether. A quick check on the council’s planning pages before you commit to drawings can stop you being told to change it later, as what is allowed on one road can be off limits on the next.
Boundaries and height limits can trip you up fast. If an extension sits too close to the boundary, creeps over height limits or changes the roofline more than expected, it is the kind of detail that sparks neighbour rows and forces expensive reworks. Getting the measurements nailed down early keeps the job moving. Advise your customers that once work starts, fixing a ‘small’ mistake usually means paying for it twice.
Remember that planning is not the only box to tick as even when it is not required, a build can still grind to a halt because other approvals have been missed. Building Regulations sign off and party wall agreements often sit alongside planning, so sorting them in parallel is the simplest way to avoid last minute delays.
Picture: Installation Eye and Fix Radio have put together a spring planning permission guide.
