What we do · Change of use & permitted development
Shops to flats, offices to homes, houses to HMOs, barns to dwellings. Some changes need full planning permission, some only need prior approval, and some need nothing at all. We tell you early which route applies, what the council can and cannot consider, and how to give your scheme the best chance.
Change of use
Every building has a lawful use, grouped into use classes: homes, small HMOs, commercial and business uses, and a group of uses such as pubs, takeaways and large HMOs that sit outside the classes altogether. Moving within a class is often free of planning control. Moving between classes usually needs permission, unless a permitted development right covers it.
Turning commercial space into flats or houses, either through the prior approval route or a full planning application where the rules do not fit. We check which route gives you the best scheme, not just the quickest one.
Small HMOs for three to six people, and larger HMOs, which always need planning permission. Many councils have Article 4 directions that remove the right to convert a house to a small HMO, so we check the local position first.
Moving between shop, café, office, gym, clinic and similar uses. Many of these sit in the same use class and need no permission at all, others do, and we tell you which before you sign a lease.
These are outside the main use classes, so changing to or from them normally needs planning permission. We often handle the planning and the premises licence together.
Converting barns and agricultural buildings to homes, holiday lets, shops or workspace, through prior approval where the building qualifies, or full planning permission where it does not.
Annexes, holiday lets, care homes, home businesses, and splitting a house into flats or joining flats back into one house.
Prior approval & permitted development
Permitted development rights let certain changes go ahead without a full planning application. Some need nothing at all. Others need prior approval, a lighter process where the council can only look at a short list of matters set by the government, and normally has 56 days to decide. Get the detail wrong, though, and the right does not apply, so the paperwork and measurements matter.
The government route for converting many shops, offices and other commercial buildings to homes. The council can only consider set matters, such as transport, flooding, noise, contamination and natural light.
Converting farm buildings to homes and other uses, within limits on numbers and floor space, and where the building is genuinely suitable for conversion.
Single-storey rear extensions beyond the normal limits, where neighbours are notified and the council considers the effect on their amenity.
Upward extensions to houses and some blocks of flats and commercial buildings, where the council looks at design, the effect on neighbours and the street.
Extensions, loft conversions, outbuildings and porches that need no application at all, if they stay inside the limits. We check the measurements before you build.
A formal certificate confirming that a use or building work is lawful. It gives certainty for a sale, a mortgage or a challenge from the council.
See our 2026 England council fee schedule for Class MA (£260 per home), Class Q (£536) and standard prior approval (£249) charges.
Briefing note
Room sizes are one of the most common reasons conversions and new homes run into trouble. Minimum sizes come from the government's nationally described space standard, which sets minimum areas for whole homes, bedrooms and built-in storage in England.
| Bedroom | Min. floor area | Min. width |
|---|---|---|
| Single (one bedspace) | 7.5 m² | 2.15 m |
| First double or twin | 11.5 m² | 2.75 m |
| Any other double or twin | 11.5 m² | 2.55 m |
Planning applications. The space standard is a planning standard, not a Building Regulation. A council can only insist on it where its local plan has adopted it, so we check the local policy first.
Permitted development. Since 6 April 2021, every new home created under permitted development rights, such as offices or shops to flats, must meet the standard, whatever the local plan says.
HMOs. Separate licensing minimums apply to rooms used for sleeping: 6.51 m² for one adult and 10.22 m² for two adults.
GOV.UK: nationally described space standard ↗A summary for guidance. Always check the full standard and the local plan policy for each scheme, or ask us to check your plans.
Before you start
Permitted development rights are often removed or restricted, and it is easy to miss. We check these before anything else:
The rules on this page apply in England. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own versions, and we advise on those too.
The government changes these rights regularly. We always check the current rules for your property before advising.