UK Law and Practice Contributed by: Colin Rodrigues and Harminder Sandhu, Hawkins Hatton Corporate Lawyers Ltd
opment”. The NPPF was revised in light of the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023. See 1.4 Proposals for Reform . 4.2 Legislative and Governmental Controls Applicable to Design, Appearance and Method of Construction The LPA will decide whether a proposed devel - opment of a property should be permitted. The developer seeking to obtain planning per - mission will submit plans and specifications of the intended work to be undertaken to the rel- evant LPA. Planning permission is required for most new buildings, major alterations to existing buildings, and significant changes to the use of a building or piece of land. When planning permission is granted, it is usually subject to strict conditions with which a developer must comply. Building Regulations Approval Building regulations are minimum standards for design, construction and alterations to almost every building. A landowner applies to its local authority building control department for building regulations approval. Examples of where build - ing regulations approval will likely be required include: • when erecting a new building; • when extending or altering an existing build - ing; and • when providing services and/or fittings in a building (such as washing and sanitary facilities, hot water cylinders, foul water and rainwater drainage, replacement windows and fuel-burning appliances of any type). When the work is carried out, it must meet the relevant technical requirements in the building
regulations. In addition, the work must not make other fabric, services and fittings less compliant or more dangerous than they were before. 4.3 Regulatory Authorities The local authorities for regional areas regulate the use of individual parcels of real estate, sub - ject to prevailing primary and secondary legisla - tion. 4.4 Obtaining Entitlements to Develop a New Project It is usual for LPAs to notify any neighbour - ing properties of a new development project or major refurbishment. Notices are displayed, and the parish, town or community council is usually notified. This enables third parties to pro - vide their comments on the proposed planning permission. The LPA will then consider any minor chang - es to the planning permission in light of these comments. Third parties have the right to apply for a judicial review of an LPA decision if they have reason to believe that a decision has been reached unlawfully. 4.5 Right of Appeal Against an Authority’s Decision If the LPA refuses permission or imposes condi - tions, it must provide written reasons. Appeals must be submitted within six months of the date
of the application decision letter. 4.6 Agreements With Local or Governmental Authorities
It may be necessary to enter into agreements with local or governmental authorities or agen - cies, or with utility suppliers, to facilitate a devel - opment project. These agreements can include (for instance) the developer committing to pay - ments towards local infrastructure improvement
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