Win conservation area planning applications first

Any application for a site inside a designated conservation area counts. Conservation area restrictions remove permitted development rights that apply elsewhere, so work that needs no consent on an ordinary street lands on the council's list here. That gives you a clear view of jobs your rivals never see coming.

Extensions, roofs and dormers you can quote for

Side extensions, rear extensions of more than one storey, dormers and roof alterations all need full permission in a conservation area. Each one signals a builder, roofer, joiner and architect to be hired, with materials matched to the street. These are substantial householder jobs with owners ready to spend on quality.

Windows, doors and frontages under Article 4

Article 4 direction planning applications cover replacement windows, front doors, porches, boundary walls, roof coverings and even exterior painting. These are clean, specified jobs for heritage window makers, joiners, metalworkers and decorators, and one approved street brings neighbours asking for the same.

Demolition that signals a new build

In England, demolishing an unlisted building in a conservation area needs planning permission. In Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, conservation area consent planning rules still apply as a separate application. Either way, demolition means redevelopment: groundworks, main contractors, architects and suppliers follow.

Trees, shopfronts and change of use

Owners give the council six weeks' notice before cutting or lopping protected trees, which hands tree surgeons a named client. Shopfront replacements, signage and conversions to flats or homes bring work to shopfitters, sign makers and fit-out teams who know period detailing.

Conservation area work goes to the firms that turn up early with the right skills. Here is how each one converts a new application into a signed job.

Builders land the main contract

A householder extension or conversion needs a contractor who handles traditional materials with confidence. Builders read the description, visit the street and write to the owner or agent with photographs of matching work nearby. Arrive before the decision and you price the job with no competition at the table.

Specialist trades win the detail

Stonemasons, lime plasterers, roofers, leadworkers, heritage joiners and tree surgeons each spot their own work in the description. A sash replacement, a slate roof or a tree works notice names the exact job. Quote first and you become the specialist the main contractor brings in on this project and the next.

Manufacturers and suppliers get specified

Makers of timber windows, clay tiles, cast iron rainwater goods and conservation rooflights win when their product goes into the drawings. Suppliers of natural slate, reclaimed brick and lime mortar send samples to the agent while the council is still asking for them, and the order follows the approval.

Architects and consultants take the brief

Architects pick up schemes where owners drew their own plans and now face requests for amendments. Heritage consultants, planning consultants, surveyors and structural engineers offer the heritage statement, the condition survey or the appeal the project needs. Each application tells them which owner needs expert help this week.

Leads emails you every new planning application that matches your keywords, the day councils publish it, in one email a day. Choose the whole country or up to 5 areas. Each area is a radius of up to 75 miles centred on a postcode or town, or a whole council. You open your morning email and know exactly which owners to call.

Every lead gives you what you need to make contact

Each lead carries:

• the planning reference, site address and council
• the description of the work and the application type
• key dates and the decision status
• a link to the council's own record
• the applicant, agent firm and business contact wherever the council publishes them

Track every job from first call to signed contract

The built-in lead pipeline records who you contacted, who you quoted and which jobs you won, so no opportunity slips through. Leads also includes everything in Research: search across 2.3 million planning applications from 400+ councils in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, advanced filters and CSV export. Pull every past conservation area job on your patch and build a target list of streets and agents to work.

One price, every lead

Leads costs £49 + VAT a month. Win one set of sash windows or one slate roof and the year is paid for.

Watching your own street rather than chasing work? Anyone can get free email alerts for planning applications near an address, postcode, town or council.