Heritage, landscape and trees pre-application advice


Pre-application advice will help to:

  • see whether your proposal requires planning permission or would be allowed under permitted development
  • see whether officers think the proposal would be approved and provide guidance on improvements
  • address any potential problems with your application
  • highlight any specialist advice you might need
  • avoid submissions of invalid applications

We'll discuss your proposal in more depth, including the design and any materials you plan to use before you submit a planning application. The more information provided will mean we can give you a more detailed response.

Types of advice

We offer two types of advice:

  • written advice
  • meeting with heritage, landscape or tree officers

They all include the option to request follow-up advice if required.

Types of work

Heritage

  • grade I listed buildings, grade II* listed buildings and other listed structures within the original boundary of the property
  • making major structural changes to grade II listed buildings including walls, windows, floors, staircases and any demolition

Landscape for major developments

  • the impact on the landscape and the visual character of the surrounding area
  • any proposed soft landscape schemes

Trees

  • protected trees
  • significant trees close to the proposed build
  • changes to the use of land the trees are on

Development size

Household

This would be changes to an existing property within the property boundary:

  • adding a dropped kerb
  • adding solar panels
  • building or converting a garage
  • building a car port
  • building an annexe
  • extensions
  • garden outbuildings like sheds and summer houses

Minor

  • works affecting more than one existing property
  • new builds of one to nine houses, apartments, flats or holiday lets
  • commercial builds with up to 999 square metres of floor space
  • mixed builds of one to nine houses, apartments, flats or holiday lets and up to 999 square metres of commercial floor space
  • changes to the use of land less than a hectare in size
  • garden outbuildings like barns, greenhouses, and stables
  • shop advertisements

Major

  • new builds of 10 to 39 houses, apartments or flats
  • commercial builds with between 1,000 and 4,999 square metres of floor space
  • mixed builds of 10 to 39, apartments or flats and between 1,000 and 4,999 square metres of commercial floor space
  • changes to the use of land between 1 and 5 hectares in size

No development

This would usually be when you are not looking to do any work, but need advice on protected trees and tree preservation orders.

Cost

Our fees vary based on the type of development and the type of advice you need. You can find out more on our fees webpage.

Applications

Before you begin you will need the following:

Heritage

  • a site location plan with the site outlined in red
  • scaled plans that clearly outline the planned works. This could also include elevation and floor plans
  • a report on heritage significance
  • photos of the site

Landscape

  • a site location plan drawn to a recognised scale showing all existing trees, planting and landscape features
  • details of the proposed layout
  • tree surveys where needed
  • landscape and visual appraisals where needed
  • photos of the site

Trees

  • a site location plan drawn to a recognised scale showing all existing trees, planting and landscape features
  • details of the proposed layout
  • tree reports if available
  • photos of the tree(s)

No development

  • tree reports if available
  • photos of the tree(s)

Documents should either be Word documents, JPEG/PNG photos or PDFs and 10MB or smaller. You can send us additional documents later, we'll let you know how once you've submitted your application.

Apply

After applying

We'll check your application and may contact you if we need more information.

Written advice

You'll get a written response within 20 working days.

Meetings

An officer will contact you within five working days to arrange a meeting. This can either be on-site or at Maidstone House.

You'll then get their written advice within 15 working days of the meeting.

Other areas to consider

There may be other restrictions which you need to consider.

Planning

Our planning team can offer guidance for various developments and types of work.

Building regulations

Building regulations are separate to planning and are about making sure any work carried out is done correctly and to a high standard. Details of how to make an application to our building control team will be included in the email you receive after submitting your application.