Building control application forms and charges

Full Plan application

This is the first of two types of application relevant for proposed building works.

• Detailed plans, specifications, calculations and other supporting information should be submitted as necessary to show compliance with the Building Regulations. The amount of detail required will depend on the size and type of building work proposed. A location plan showing where the building is located, relative to neighbouring streets should be included.
• There are no restrictions on the suitability of full plan applications as they can be used for domestic, commercial and public buildings.
• Plans will be checked within 10 working days and a list of observations produced. Any additional documents or amendments received to address these observations will be processed within three working days.
• A formal decision notice will be issued (approval, conditional approval or rejection) within five weeks unless an extension to two months has been agreed. In the few instances where a rejection notice is issued, your application will automatically be re-submitted for approval or conditional approval, once the outstanding issues have been resolved. There is no additional charge for re-submission.
• A completion certificate will be issued upon satisfactory completion on site. This is an important document that should be kept in a safe place as it can help speed up and ease the future sale of a property. For this reason it is very important that our surveyors are called in to inspect the work as it progresses.
• Approved plans and assessed charges are valid for up to three years even if regulations and charges change. If work does not commence within three years of receipt, a new application must be made.

Building Notice application

This is the second type of application relevant for proposed building works.

• Only suitable for small domestic works where detailed plans are unnecessary. As no formal approval is given, good liaison between the builder and the building control surveyor is essential to ensure that work runs smoothly. The submission of a marked up sketch, showing the location of the building can be helpful.
• This type of application is not an option for work covered by the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (RRO) such as commercial buildings or flats with common areas. It also cannot be used where a building is being erected to front on to a private street or where an extension, erection or underpinning is over or within 3.0m of a public sewer (as shown on the Thames Water Authority map of sewers). Full plan applications would be necessary in these instances.
• Although detailed plans are not necessary as part of the submission, structural calculations and details may be required to justify certain elements of work. For example, structural calculations will always be required for a loft conversion.
• A completion certificate will be issued upon satisfactory completion on site. This is an important document that should be kept in a safe place as it can help speed up and ease the future sale of a property. For this reason it is very important that our surveyors are called in to inspect the work as it progresses.
• If work does not start within three years of receipt, a new application must be made.

Regularisation application

This application type is only relevant where building works have been carried out without the submission of either a Full Plan or Building Notice application. Often property sales are held up when unauthorised works become apparent during the sale process.

• Regularisation is only an option if the unauthorised works were carried out after 11 November 1985.
• The submission of a Regularisation application followed by adequate inspection to show compliance with the Building Regulations will enable the issue of a regularisation certificate.