Pre-Application Planning Advice: How It Works and When to Use It

• **What it is**:
• •An informal written or meeting-based opinion from a planning officer on a proposed development
• •An opportunity to understand the planning constraints affecting your site before committing to a full design
• •A way to test whether a proposed design approach is likely to be accepted before spending money on detailed drawings
• •In some boroughs, a condition precedent for major applications — the planning authority expects a pre-app to have been submitted before a major (10+ units) planning application is submitted

• **What it is not**:
• •A planning permission — a positive pre-app response does not guarantee approval
• •A guarantee — the officer who provides pre-app advice may not be the officer who determines the formal application
• •Binding — a planning committee can override an officer's pre-app opinion
• •Necessarily consistent — planning officers may give different views on the same scheme at different times

**The key risk of pre-app advice**: The response may be negative even where the scheme is ultimately approvable — particularly if the scheme has not been presented at its best. A pre-app response that says 'concern about the impact on the Conservation Area' does not necessarily mean the scheme will be refused — it means the scheme as presented gave the officer a concern. A well-presented application with a good Design and Access Statement can overcome the same concern.

**Should you disclose your pre-app response to the planning officer?** Yes — formal planning applications should cross-reference the pre-app response and explain how the design has been amended to address the concerns raised. This shows the planning authority that you engaged positively with the process.

Pre-app advice is not always necessary or cost-effective. The cases where it provides genuine value are:

**1. Complex or precedent-setting schemes** Any scheme where planning outcome is genuinely uncertain — Conservation Area, listed building setting, schemes that significantly exceed common norms, change of use from commercial to residential, or schemes affecting neighbours who have previously objected to development in the area.

**2. Large residential developments (5+ units)** For larger schemes (5+ dwellings, significant change of use), most London planning authorities expect or require pre-application engagement. The planning authority may not give the application a smooth ride without it.

**3. Where design options are genuinely open** If you have not yet fixed the footprint, height, or massing of the scheme, a pre-app conversation can help you understand which design direction is more likely to succeed before committing to detailed drawings.

**4. Where site constraints are poorly understood** If there is uncertainty about whether the site falls within a flood zone, a protected view corridor, an area with a special planning policy, or is affected by transport safeguarding, a pre-app conversation can clarify the planning context quickly.

• **When pre-app advice is NOT worth the cost**:
• •For a standard householder extension in a non-Conservation Area location that clearly falls within or near Permitted Development parameters — a straightforward Householder Application is faster and cheaper
• •For works that qualify for a Lawful Development Certificate — the LDC process confirms PD compliance more definitively than pre-app advice
• •For schemes where the design is already fixed and you are not prepared to make changes in response to officer feedback — if the response requires changes you won't make, the advice was not useful

• **Step 1 — Prepare the right level of information**
• Pre-app submissions should include:
• •Site location plan and site photos
• •Proposed design at concept level (not necessarily to full planning drawing standard — outline floor plans and elevations)
• •A brief description of the proposed development and the planning context
• •Specific questions you want the planning officer to address

Submitting too little information gets you a vague response. Submitting too much (full drawing set at planning stage) wastes money on drawings before the officer has confirmed the approach is acceptable.

• **Step 2 — Ask specific questions**
• Don't ask 'Will this get planning permission?' — the officer cannot answer that. Ask:
• •'Is the proposed massing and form appropriate for this Conservation Area?'
• •'What heritage significance do you attach to the existing rear return that is proposed for demolition?'
• •'Would a set-back from the ridge line address your concern about roof line dominance?'
• •'Is the change of use from commercial ground floor to residential consistent with the local development plan?'

**Step 3 — Act on the response** If the response raises specific concerns, address them in the design before submitting the formal application. If the response suggests a particular approach, adopt it and explain in the Design and Access Statement why you have done so.

**Step 4 — Quote the pre-app in the DAS** In the Design and Access Statement submitted with the formal application, cross-reference the pre-app reference number and explain how the design has responded to the officer's feedback. This demonstrates that you engaged with the planning authority constructively.

• **Pre-application advice fees (London boroughs, 2025)**:
• •Written response only (householder-scale): £150–£500
• •Written response with meeting (householder): £300–£800
• •Minor residential (1–4 dwellings): £500–£1,500
• •Small major (5–9 dwellings): £1,000–£2,500
• •Major (10+ dwellings): £2,000–£5,000+

Fees vary significantly by borough — check the local planning authority's website for their current scale.