Home Resident Planning Information (Residents)

Planning Information (Residents)

INCREASE IN PLANNING FEES

The Department for Infrastructure has announced that it is to amend the Planning (Fees) Regulations (NI) 2015 to apply a one year inflationary uplift of approximately 12.3% across all planning fee categories. This will mean, for example, that the fee for an extension, improvement or alteration of a dwelling house will increase from £291 to £327.

The increase will take effect on 6 April 2023.

Planning Information

Before submitting a major application, you must have consulted with the community on your proposals.

Twelve weeks before you submit your formal application you must present a proposal of application notice, indicating how you will carry out the consultation.

You must also ensure that all consultation events that you hold in relation to your application are advertised in one local newspaper at least seven days in advance of the event.

Submitting your application

You must submit a pre-application consultation report with your planning application. The report must detail the consultation undertaken and any changes made to the proposal as a result.

The purpose of the report is to confirm that pre-application consultation has taken place in line with statutory minimum requirements and with any further requirements set in response to the proposal of application notice (PAN).

The report should set out what steps were taken to comply with the statutory and PAN requirements. This should include copies of advertisements for the public event(s) and specify who has been consulted and what methods have been used.

It is advisable that the report also includes:

  • reference to, and examples of, material made available at public events
  • response from those consulted and the applicant’s consideration of those responses

The report should also set out to what extent the proposals may have changed as a result of pre-application consultation.

The report must be made in writing and accompany the application when submitted as failure to do so will deem it in invalid.

We are required to include the report on part 1 of the planning register along with the application, plans and drawings.

The type of work you intend to carry out will determine if you need planning permission, the type of application you need to make and if you need building regulation approval.

Our planning office, located at

Bridgewater House,
23a Castlewellan Road,
Banbridge,
Co. Down
BT32 4AX

Opening from 9.30am – 4.30pm on Mon – Wed & Fri and  from 10.30am – 4.30pm on Thursday. From here you can pick up an application form, submit a completed application, pay fees and check the status of an application.

Planning queries should be directed to 0300 200 7830 or  

However, should you have difficulty in getting through on the 0300 phone number, and you know the name of the planning officer you wish to contact, they can be emailed directly. Planning Officers Email Addresses