Amendments following the grant of planning permission

Last Updated: 3 April 2024

Developers can change their schemes after planning permission has been granted.

On this page you can find out about the different types of amendment you can apply for, the application fees and how to make an application.

There are two types of amendment that developers can make, depending on the size of the changes they want to make:

• Non-material amendments, for minor changes
• Minor material amendments, for larger scale changes

These amendments only apply to planning permissions. They do not apply to other planning consents like listed building consent, conservation area consent or advertisement consent.

Non-material amendments

Section 96A of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (introduced by section 190 of the Planning Act 2008) makes it possible to apply to make a non-material amendment to existing planning permissions.

We do not want amendments to have a negative impact on neighbours or the wider public amenity. To qualify, non-material amendments:

• must be within the scope of the original permission
• must not result in a different scheme with different impacts

There is no official definition of a non-material amendment, so we consider each case separately.

If we don’t think your proposal is a non-material amendment you will need to make a new full application or apply for a minor material amendment.

We’re likely to consider the amendment if:

• there is no alteration to the original application site boundary (‘red line boundary’) and the proposal is inside the boundary
• the amendment does not conflict with our development plan policies or other Government guidance
• there is no conflict with any conditions on the planning permission
• there are no clashes with any concerns raised in the original planning application
• the approved footprint/siting of the building is not moved in any direction by more than one metre
• the proposal is not an extension of the approved development
• the height/volume of the building or extension would not be increased
• there is a reduction in the height/volume/size of the building/extension
• the amendments are not a big change in the design of the building
• there are no new works or elements not considered by any environmental statement submitted with the application
• there are no changes to windows, doors or openings that have any overlooking impact on neighbouring properties

Non-material amendments fees

Fees for us to consider a non-material amendment application are:

• for a householder application, £34
• in all other cases, £234

Minor material amendments

Central government considers that the definition of a minor material amendment is 'one whose scale and nature results in a development which is not substantially different from the one which has been approved'.
This means, a minor material amendment is something of a minor nature that has a material impact on the proposed development or on neighbouring properties.

Amendments which are not minor can’t be considered under this procedure and will need a new planning application.

Minor material amendment fees

The standard fee, payable to us, is £234.

How to apply for an amendment

There are three ways to apply for an amendment to a planning permission:

• online using the Planning Portal. This allows the application to be submitted electronically
• download a copy of the application form (and guidance notes) from the Planning Portal and submit it to us via email or post
• paper copies of the forms can be collected from South Lakeland House or sent out on request