These are all the unusual Peterborough planning rules you should know about

Planning rules aren’t always clear cut, because there are so many to contend with. Given that homeowners and developers must, in some cases, try to follow national, regional and local policies, it’s not unusual for them to come up against contradictions.

In fact, Peterborough City Council (PCC) documents say that planning is “not an exact science”, but rather relies on “informed judgement” taking into account relevant rules and policies and the public interest.

Some planning applications are decided by planning officers within the council, while others are publicly debated by councillors. These tend to be major developments or those which are marginal or contentious.

But, while planning is indeed far from an exact science, there are lots of rules to take into account – and some are more intuitive than others. Below are some of the most unusual planning rules in Peterborough and beyond, which you many not be familiar with.

You may need planning permission to concrete over your driveway

This little-known planning rule is probably one of the least frequently enforced, but the rationale behind it does make sense. The rule exists because surface water won't be absorbed and may not have anywhere to run off which could result in flooding. Drainage solutions therefore must be considered, or an alternate material such as grass, gravel or even permeable concrete block paving, none of which require planning permission.

You may need permission to prune a tree, even if it’s overhanging your garden

You must seek consent to carry out any kind of work involving a tree covered by a tree preservation order (TPO) or that is in a designated conservation area. There are multiple conservation areas in Peterborough, including in the city centre, the Ortons, Park, Stanground and Werrington.

Anyone can establish a village green

You might assume that village greens are owned by local councils, but, while that is often the case, they can also be privately-owned. Anyone can apply to have their own land classified as a village green (this happened in Thornhaugh earlier this year) or apply to register land they don’t own as a village green if it has been “used by local people for lawful sports and pastimes” for at least 20 years. One key exception, though, is that land cannot suddenly be declared a village green – and therefore enjoy its rights and protections – to frustrate new developments.

Submitting a planning application isn’t cheap

Anyone who’s submitted a planning application will be aware that there are fees involved, but for those who haven’t these may come as a surprise. Applying for an alteration to your home will set you back around £200 in Peterborough, but fees for developers can be significantly larger. For instance, applying to build houses on a 2.5 hectares site costs almost £11,500, plus an additional £138 for each 0.1 hectare over this up to £150,000.

Developers can also be required to pay for local infrastructure

Planning permission for new developments usually comes with specific conditions, such as the number of “affordable houses” that must be provided. While there is no official definition of affordable housing, most local authorities follow the National Planning Policy Framework definition that it must be at least 20% below local market value – whether it’s to buy or rent. Developers can also be required to contribute towards local transport, schools, GPs, parks, libraries and so on as their new build will increase the population and therefore demand for services in the area.

Planning decisions shouldn’t be party political

Councils are largely made up of political parties (although some councillors are independent), which will usually make decisions as a group. In Peterborough, the Green Party doesn’t have a whip – meaning its councillors may not always vote in the same way as each other – but in general it’s common practice for an entire party to vote the same way. Group decisions shouldn’t be made when it comes to planning, though: Peterborough’s planning code of conduct states that the "view of the Ombudsman is that subjecting a planning decision to the discipline of the political whip amounts to maladministration”. It adds that councillors should “avoid, as far as possible, meeting applicants or potential applicants”.

You could be responsible for maintaining a river or lake near your property

“A landowner with a water body (e.g. a lake or river) running through or alongside their property is known as a ‘riparian owner’ as they will own all or part of the water body in the absence of anything in their conveyancing documents to state otherwise. If a watercourse is the boundary to the land then a riparian owner will normally own, and therefore have maintenance responsibilities, up to the centre line of the watercourse.” This is how PCC defines riparian ownership – which was a frequent topic of discussion at a planning meeting last month in which it emerged numerous residents with riparian responsibilities for a dyke known as St Thomas’s cut in March were unaware of this.

Planning permission can be granted retrospectively

If you break planning rules, there are a range of enforcement actions that can be taken against you including prosecution in the most serious cases. But in others, it may be possible to secure planning permission after a breach has occurred. This was the case in Whittlesey recently, when a field was officially allowed to be converted into a builder's yard, almost a year after this had already begun to happen.

Planning permission is required to install solar panels on flat roofs

Planning permission for the installation of solar panels is only required in particular circumstances, such as their addition to listed buildings or buildings in conservation areas and buildings with flat roofs. Planning permission for the introduction of solar panels on top of Peterborough Magistrates’ Court was submitted by the Ministry of Justice in 2021, but was refused because: "Insufficient information has been submitted to adequately demonstrate the impact of the proposed development on the design and character of the surrounding". Of particular concern was views of Peterborough Cathedral – incredibly important in Peterborough planning policy – and protected by the city centre conservation area.

An office can be converted into a home without planning permission

Between 2016, when this unusual rule was made permanent, and 2020, almost 65,000 new homes were added to England’s housing stock – having previously been offices. Planning permission isn’t needed for these conversions, which the Government says are helping to deliver much-needed housing, despite concerns over their quality and the loss of office space. But there are certain conditions to the conversions, such as one added in 2020–21, when the rule was reviewed, that “adequate natural light in all habitable rooms” is required.

Schools, universities and hospitals can be extended without planning permission

Like office-to-home conversions, extensions to schools, universities and hospitals can bypass the need for planning permission to be granted by the council because they already have general planning permission granted by Parliament – this is known as having permitted development rights (PDR). There are currently limits on how much these buildings can be extended by, but the Government has considered removing these and also applying the rights to prisons and defence sites.