Check if you need planning permission

1. Check your planning area

Parts of Westmorland and Furness are covered by national parks, which have their own planning authorities. Your proposals may also be affected by being part of a conservation area.

Check your planning area using our online mapping tools:

• Eden and South Lakeland residents
• Barrow residents

If your development is in a national park then you will need to apply to the park's planning teams, not to us:

• Lake District National Park planning
• Yorkshire Dales National Park planning

Proposals made within a conservation area are subject to tighter controls. These controls are called Article 4 directions. 

Areas in Westmorland and Furness affected by Article 4 include Kendal (South Lakeland), Alston (Eden) and Dalton (Barrow).

Detailed guidance is available for Kendal and Alston conservation areas.

2. Visit the Planning Portal website

Planning Portal offers general information about planning rules in the UK. For most applications it should contain everything you need to know.

• Planning Portal: Do you need permission?

Lawful Development Certificates

If you don’t need planning permission, you may decide to apply for a ‘Lawful Development Certificate for Proposed Works’ (LDC).

It’s not compulsory but may be useful if you ever need to confirm that works are lawful under planning legislation.

• Find out more about LDCs on Planning Portal

3. Speak to the council

The council’s planning team offer a pre-application advice service which can speed up the planning process, advise if an application is likely to be approved or not, and highlight any potential issues.

• Get advice from the council before applying (link to come)

4. Apply for permission

You can make an application for planning permission either via Planning Portal or directly the council. Planning Portal is faster and easier, though it does charge a fee for the service.

If you decide to apply to the council, the forms you’ll need are available on Planning Portal. Completed forms can then be send using the contact details below.

Apply online via Planning Portal