If you have a plot of land or a site with development potential, one of the first decisions is whether to apply for outline or full planning permission.
Outline planning permission
Outline permission establishes whether a development is acceptable in principle, for example "two detached houses" on a site. The details are approved later as reserved matters:
- Access: how vehicles and people get in and out
- Appearance: what the buildings look like
- Landscaping: planting, boundaries and surfaces
- Layout: where the buildings and roads go
- Scale: the size and height of the buildings
You can include some of these at outline stage. Access is often included, because it's fundamental to whether a site works.
Full planning permission
A full application approves everything at once: the principle and all the details. Once granted, and any pre-commencement conditions are discharged, you can build.
Which should you choose?
Outline often makes sense when:
- you're buying or selling land and want to establish its value
- the main question is whether the council will accept development there at all
- you don't want to spend money on detailed design until the principle is agreed
Full is often better when:
- the principle is fairly clear, for example an infill plot inside a village
- you know what you want to build and want to start sooner
- the design itself is likely to be the main issue, as on sensitive or heritage sites
Remember that outline permission isn't the end of the process. Reserved matters normally have to be submitted within three years, and each stage needs its own drawings, documents and decision time.
Refused at outline?
A refusal at outline stage isn't necessarily the end. Sometimes a revised scheme with fewer homes, a different layout, or a full application that shows the council exactly what is proposed will succeed where an outline application failed. Talk to us about your site.
Every site is different. This guide is general information, not advice on your project. For a straight answer about your property, book a free home visit: Ben will come and look, with no obligation.
Who'll handle your project: Benjamin Plunkett, our Managing Director and Planning & Heritage Consultant, is your point of contact from the first site visit to the decision. Charlie Plunkett MCIAT produces the drawings.
About us