Planning Permission for Drives & Decking in Solihull

Our lovely summer seems to have ended overnight. I hope you took every opportunity to enjoy the garden while the warm weather lasted. 

You may have had thoughts about some new decking to entertain family and friends or even a new driveway for everyone to park on. Well if you are planning something in preparation for next summer it is important to remember you may need Planning Permission. 

Since October 2008 you need planning permission for decking and drives of certain sizes and types, Planwise in Knowle can you help you with this: 

Decking 

If the timber decking in your rear garden is more than 300mm above the original ground level or will occupy more than 50% of your total garden area (extensions and sheds are included in your 50% limit) then you will need Planning Permission. It may be worth obtaining some advice from a Planning Consultancy service or a call into Solihull Planning Department may answer your questions. As always though if you think it might affect your neighbours it is always worth consulting them first to make sure they are happy with your plans. 

Drives 

Here again you need to be careful. Replacing an old paving slab or gravel drive with a new tarmac drive might seem straightforward and simply an improvement to your home but there are certain design requirements. If your drive is over 5m2 then you should include either or both of the following 

• Any impermeable surface (such as tarmacadam) should drain into a channel that takes the rainwater to a soakaway in your garden. 

• Alternatively the rainwater should drain directly into open ground or gravel 

These requirements are to ensure that rainwater runs away naturally into the ground and we don’t add to the likelihood of drains flooding. 

If you are unable to provide this natural drainage then you will need Planning Permission and quite possibly Building Regulation approval. This could mean the need to produce some building plans or drawings to support your applications to Solihull Local Authority. 

Alternatively you could lay a block paving, granite block or permeable tarmac surface which would drain naturally and you won’t have any problems. 

Planwise are based in Knowle near Solihull in the West Midlands and are headed up by myself, Mark Temple. I have over 35 years professional experience including over 5 years spent preparing building plans and CAD drawings for planning permissions. If you need any advice or a free consultation then give us a call or visit us at www.planwise.org 

Get decking!