Hello

I recently made a Planning Application to the local Council to make some adaptations to our house for a disabled person.

On the application form/guidelines it stated that the application was exempt from application fees, if the application was for use of a disabled person. The application was made and adequate proof was provided to show that the person was disabled.

The Council accepted the application. However, after a week they called to say that as the Disabled person was not currently living at the Planning Application site , that the application was invalid and the fee would have to be paid to progress the application.

I had a look into this and the following rules apply:

P { margin-bottom: 0.21cm; } The Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications, Deemed Applications, Requests and Site Visits) (England) Regulations 2012

In that regulation, a “disabled person” means—

4. (2) (a)a person who is within any of the descriptions of persons to whom section 29 of the National Assistance Act 1948(1) (welfare arrangements for blind, deaf, dumb and crippled persons, etc) applies.

In those rules can be found :

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Exceptions – access and facilities for disabled persons 4.—(1)

4.—(1) Regulation 3 (the requirement to pay the local authority a fee) shall not apply where the local planning authority to whom the application is made are satisfied that it relates solely to—

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for the purpose, in either case, of providing means of access to or within the dwellinghouse for a disabled person who is resident in, or is proposing to take up residence in, that dwellinghouse,or of providing facilities designed to secure that person’s greater safety, health or comfort.

I pointed this out to the official and they have now reinstated the application for free.

So, Contrary to what you may be told by your Local Council, if you are making a Planning Application for a Disabled person it is free!. even if the Disabled person is not residing at the Application site.

Which makes absolute sense, if you consider that a disabled person may want to see if he or she can alter a property for their use before purchase.

Hope that helps someone uphold another regulation that the Council seem unaware of.

nn

Potentially very useful information, thank you for posting.

In our council's case it is a saving of £175.00. Which is a significant amount if you are not on benefits.