Lawful Development Certificate drawings, £539 in total
If your extension or loft can go ahead without planning permission, a certificate is the council’s own written confirmation of it. We survey the house, draw the works to the permitted limits and submit the application: £389 plus the £150 survey.
- £389 drawings + £150 survey (£539 total)
- Submitted for you
- Free redraws until approval
What is a Lawful Development Certificate?
It is a document from your council stating that the work you propose is lawful, meaning it needs no planning permission. It is not a permission, and it is optional, but it protects you when you sell. Our price is £389 plus a £150 measured survey, £539 in total with no VAT to add, and the council’s own application fee is separate.
Inside the £539
- A measured survey of the house, roof and boundaries, done in person
- Existing and proposed plans and elevations, with each dimension tested against the permitted development limit that applies
- A roof volume calculation where the work is a loft or dormer
- Site plan and location plan with the red line
- A written statement describing exactly what is proposed, which the council asks for
- Submission to the council and replies to the officer, with free redraws until approval
Why bother with a certificate if the work is already permitted?
Because permission-free is your own opinion until someone with authority agrees. A buyer’s solicitor will ask whether a loft or extension was lawful, and a certificate answers that in one sheet. Without it you may be asked for an indemnity policy or a price reduction.
There is a second reason. The council reads our drawings against the rules before it grants the certificate, so errors in your own reading of them, such as an eaves height over 3 m near the boundary, come out before you have paid a builder.
What does the council actually test?
Only whether the works meet the permitted development tests: it does not weigh your neighbours’ views or the design. Precision is what counts. The government guidance says an application must describe exactly what is proposed, and an officer may refuse if the information is vague (paragraphs 005 and 006). A refusal is not conclusive, though: it may only mean the evidence so far was thin, and you can reapply.
- Is the house a dwellinghouse, not a flat or maisonette?
- Has permitted development been removed by an Article 4 direction or an earlier planning condition?
- Do depth, height, eaves and volume stay inside the limits in the Order?
- Are the materials and side windows within the conditions in the Order?
When a certificate is the wrong tool
If the extension must be deeper than the permitted 3 m or 4 m, a certificate cannot help; see prior approval for a larger home extension for up to 6 m or 8 m, or a householder planning application for more. In a conservation area many rights disappear, and the better route is usually planning permission. Our planning permission guide shows how to choose.
For a loft, read loft conversion drawings, since the volume test is the one that most often decides whether a certificate is possible.
The certificate in figures and clauses
- s.192
- A certificate for proposed works is granted under section 192 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. gov.uk, Lawful development certificates, paragraph 001
- Presumed lawful
- Once granted, development carried out in accordance with the certificate must be presumed lawful unless there is a material change before it begins. gov.uk, Lawful development certificates, paragraph 002
- Article 4
- A direction under article 4 that removes the right you relied on is one of the examples of a material change that can undo a certificate before work starts. gov.uk, Lawful development certificates, paragraph 002
- 3 m / 4 m
- The usual single-storey rear extension depth under permitted development: 3 m for terraced and semi-detached houses, 4 m for detached. GPDO 2015, Sch. 2 Part 1, Class A.1(f)
- 40 m³ / 50 m³
- The volume a roof enlargement can add under Class B: 40 m³ on a terrace, 50 m³ otherwise. GPDO 2015, Class B.1(d)
- Half the fee
- For a proposed use or operation the application fee is half the full planning application fee. National fee schedule from 1 April 2026, published by Bradford Council
- £548
- The full householder planning fee from 1 April 2026, so a proposed-works certificate costs half of it, £274. National fee schedule from 1 April 2026, published by Bradford Council
- Building Regs
- A certificate says nothing about building regulations, which still apply to the work. gov.uk, Lawful development certificates, paragraph 003
Certificate questions
Is a Lawful Development Certificate compulsory?
No. Permitted development works can proceed without one. It is the council’s written confirmation, useful when you sell or refinance, and it fixes the position at the date it is granted.
Source: gov.uk, Lawful development certificates, paragraph 002
Does the certificate cover building regulations?
No. It deals only with planning law, so the Building Regulations 2010 and the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 still apply to the work. We price those separately.
Source: gov.uk, Lawful development certificates, paragraph 003
What is the council fee for the certificate?
For proposed works it is half the householder application fee, which is £274 when the full fee is £548. It is paid to the council, not to us.
Can I apply for a certificate for work I have already built?
Yes, that is a certificate for an existing use or operation, and its fee is the same as the full application fee. It needs evidence that the work was permitted when it was built, or that it has been in place long enough. Tell us what you have and we advise on the route.
What happens if the council refuses?
The refusal states the reason. If a drawing change can answer it, we redraw at no charge and reapply, because free redraws until approval cover this service.
Other services people book with this one
- Rear extension drawings£439 drawings + £150 survey (£589 total)
- Loft conversion drawings£439 drawings + £150 survey (£589 total)
- Prior approval for a larger home extension£349 drawings + £150 survey (£499 total)
- Householder planning drawings£479 drawings + £150 survey (£629 total)
- Building regulations drawings£479 drawings + £150 survey (£629 total)
Check that your plans really are permitted
Send the address and a few words on what you want to build. We check the house for Article 4 and conditions, then reply with a fixed fee.