Heritage, Conservation & Legal

Listed buildings, conservation areas, party walls and appeals

• Compulsory Purchase Orders: When Councils Can Take Your Property - Compulsory Purchase Orders allow councils to buy property without the owner's consent. Here's how CPOs work and what rights you have.
• What Is Listed Building Consent? - An explanation of listed building consent - when you need it, how the listing grades work, and what the application process involves.
• Planning Permission in a Conservation Area - How living in a conservation area affects your planning rights, what extra restrictions apply, and how to navigate the planning process.
• Party Wall Agreements Explained - What the Party Wall Act covers, when you need a party wall agreement, how the process works, and what it costs.
• How to Object to a Planning Application - Learn how to write an effective planning objection. Covers material planning considerations, the 21-day window, what counts as valid grounds, and how to submit your response.
• How to Appeal a Planning Decision - A guide to the planning appeal process in England, including when you can appeal, the different types of appeal, and how to prepare.
• Listed Building Grades Explained: Grade I, II* and II - What the three grades of listed building mean in England, how they affect what you can do with the property, and how to find out if your building is listed.
• Tree Preservation Orders (TPOs): What Homeowners Need to Know - What Tree Preservation Orders are, how to check if trees on your property are protected, and what you can and cannot do without council permission.
• Overlooking and Loss of Privacy: Your Rights When a Neighbour Builds - What are your rights if a neighbour's extension or development overlooks your home or garden? How overlooking is assessed in planning decisions.
• Boundary Disputes and Planning Permission: What You Need to Know - How boundary issues interact with the planning system - what planning can and cannot resolve, and how to handle boundary disputes when building.
• Right to Light: Can a Neighbour's Extension Block Your Light? - What is the right to light and how does it affect planning permission? How to protect your daylight when a neighbour wants to build.
• Breach of Planning Conditions: What Happens Next - What happens when planning conditions are not complied with - enforcement powers, penalties, and how to discharge conditions properly.
• Can My Neighbour Build Up to My Boundary? - Your rights when a neighbour builds an extension or structure on or near your property boundary, including permitted development rules, party wall obligations, and what you can do.