Driveway Planning Permission: What You Need To Know

Getting permission for your new drive way involves sticking to some basic rules. Driveway planning permission is not particularly complicated, and you shouldn’t run into trouble provided that you keep in mind the rules that went into effect as of October 2008.

You will very rarely need permission for driveway work although, as with any construction, this depends on the level of work involved. There is some local fluctuation, so it is worth investigating local rules and regulations before commencing, just to be on the safe side. However, It is estimated that 99% of driveway work does not require planning permission.

Covering an area of your land with hard surfaces, provided these are kept as close to ground level as possible, should not present you any planning problems. Anything at a raised, terraced or embanked level might prove more complex, but this is entirely dependent on the height and intrusive nature of any work you have planned.

Planning anything substantially raised or embanked may present you with the need to, at the very least, run your ideas past council planners. If your house is built on an incline, this is worth investigating, and if you have any worries be sure to get in touch with the planners beforehand just to err on the side of caution and avoid any future issues or extra inconvenience.

If your area is prone to storms and flooding, always check what are the local rules on drive way planning. Because a garden naturally drains flood water slowly, as opposed to a paved driveway which feeds straight into the storm drain system, there is a danger that too many paved drives could lead to problems with the system. This isn’t a major worry for most people, but do check if you’re unsure, especially if there is a history of flooding in the place you live.

While within your own boundaries, and built to a conventional design, you are unlikely to encounter any difficulty in sticking within the rules, if you’re planning work that extends onto the pavement and road you will need to contact the Highways Department through your local council. The kerb will need to be lowered to be in line with road level; this is to ensure that the pavement isn’t slowly damaged by your car every time you use your drive. Councils may do the work themselves, or more than likely, require you to use listed contractors to get the work done.

There shouldn’t be much difficulty with driveway planning permission, as long as you are sure to use contractors who know what they’re doing with respect to the rules, as long as you stay within the boundaries of your property, keeping the drive at a low and unobtrusive level, and provided you run any doubts past your local council to ensure you don’t end up with any headaches in the future.

Carl Robison is an expert in garden improvements. If you would like more information about garden planning permission or are searching for a reputable garden paving retailer please visit http://www.clearancepaving.co.uk