The Cost of Planning Crisis: Revisited

The chronic under resourcing of planning departments has been a regular theme of our newsletters over the past few months. Following what has seemed like a constant stream of announcements by Gove and his team at DLUHC over the past 72 hours, new draft legalisation was laid before parliament on the 20^th July which will see planning fees for new dwellings rise by a minimum of 25% as well as a raft of other increases.

 

In general terms, fees for minor applications will rise by 25%, rising to 35% for major applications. The maximum fee for a detailed application will also rise from £300,000 to £405,000.

 

Furthermore, fees will rise on an annual basis from April 2025 in line with inflation, or by 10%, whichever is lower.

 

The “free go” is also being scrapped, meaning that applicants will always now need to pay fees in full for any revised application following a previous refusal.

 

Disappointingly, the Government has decided not to ringfence fees. As a result, local authorities will not be required to allocate the additional fees to their planning departments, meaning there is no guarantee that resourcing will improve.

 

A previous consultation proposal to double application fees for retrospective applications has also been dropped from the draft legislation for the time being.

 

The Draft Legislation also proposes to increase some Permitted Development Right Planning Fees, again by 25%. This follows on from Mr Gove’s announcement that he would consult on extensions on Permitted Development Rights in order to deliver new and improved housing and development.

 

For more information on how this could affect you, please contact Jonathan Buckwell or Jack Harley