Technical Notes 2025, Issue 181 - Proposed Response to the Scottish Government’s consultation on ‘Permitted development rights to support the provision of new homes’

The purpose of this Technical Note is to advise Members of a current Scottish Government consultation on ‘Permitted development rights to support the provision of new homes’, and to invite comments from Members on the proposed response to the Directorate for Planning, Architecture and Regeneration. The consultation closes on 27 October 2025. The associated documents can be accessed here on the Scottish Government Website.

• The Scottish Government declared a Housing Emergency in May 2024 and published the Planning and the Housing Emergency – Delivery Plan in November 2024. The Delivery Plan set out a series of actions to be taken to address the national housing emergency. It included a commitment by the government to consider and engage on the potential scope for further Permitted Development Rights (PDR) which could be used to support additional housing delivery in specific circumstances. The government undertook targeted early engagement with stakeholders from November 2024 to March 2025 which has fed into the development of the options included in this consultation
• PDR are a form of planning permission granted through legislation, meaning that specified types of development can be carried out without the need for a planning application to be submitted and approved. Most classes of PDR are subject to conditions and limitations. These may, for example: specify the maximum size or scale of what is permitted, restrict or dis-apply the rights in certain locations (e.g. conservation areas), or provide that the PDR only apply to certain developers (e.g. local authorities or statutory undertakers)
• In most cases, PDR allows development to be carried out without reference to the planning authority, as long as the relevant PDR conditions are complied with. However, a small number of PDR are subject to a mechanism known as “prior notification/prior approval”. Under this mechanism, a developer must notify the planning authority, provide some details of the proposed development and pay the relevant fee. The authority then has an opportunity to indicate whether specific aspects of the development are acceptable. The planning authority’s determination is limited to the particular matters specified in the relevant PDR class – for example, siting, design or appearance. In this sense, the process is lighter touch than a ‘standard’ planning application because a narrower range of considerations can be taken into account
• PDR do not generally cover the development of new homes. The two current exceptions to this are: 
  •  PDR for the conversion of agricultural and forestry buildings to up to 5 residential units which may not exceed 150 sqm (subject to prior notification/prior approval and various other restrictions)
  • PDR allowing local authorities to build dwellings which conform to a local development plan
• If a development is not within the scope of PDR (i.e. is not ‘permitted development’), it does not necessarily mean the development would be unacceptable in planning terms. Instead, planning permission for such development would need to be sought and obtained through a planning application before it could be carried out
• It is also important to note that PDR do not override, or in any way affect, the requirements of other legislation and regimes such as building standards. Separate consent (such as a building warrant and listed building consent, for example) may need to be obtained even if an application for planning permission is not required
• This consultation considers whether or not the current limited PDR for the creation of new homes can be extended to help address the national housing emergency. The targeted early engagement identified two main areas in which PDR could potentially help to support additional housing delivery:
  • Homes in rural areas; and
  • Support for town centre living 

• Whilst the consultation paper primarily relates to potential PDR changes that might help to address the housing emergency, it also seeks views on measures to support the deployment of heat networks and domestic air source heat pumps (ASHPs) and changes to householder permitted development. Whilst these do not relate specifically to the housing emergency, the government states that removing further planning applications from the system may free up officer time to determine more significant applications, such as those for the creation of new housing. 

• Questions 1 to 7 of the consultation document relate to whether or not the current limitations for PDR to convert existing agricultural/ forestry into new dwellings should be amended and extended. This includes whether or not the current maximum limit of 5 new dwellings should be increased, and further technical questions covering maximum floor spaces, extensions to the buildings being converted, exempted locations and the prior notification/ approval process

• Questions 8 and 9 ask whether or not a new class of PDR should be created to permit the complete replacement of existing agricultural and forestry buildings with new-build homes

• Question 10 asks whether or not a new class of PDR for converting existing premises in town centres to new housing should apply to the whole of buildings including the ground floor. Question 11 alternatively asks if new PDR for the conversion of buildings in town centres should only apply to conversions above use Class 1A premises (shops, financial, professional and other services). Questions 12 to 17 ask further technical questions including; minimum/ maximum floor spaces or number of homes that can be created, external alterations, exempted locations the prior notification/ approval process

• Questions 18 and 19 relate to the appropriateness of using dwellings created through the potential new PDR as short-term holiday lets

• Question 20 asks whether or not current PDR for existing dwellinghouses should be extended to allow homeowners to make better use of their existing properties. Broad proposals include increasing: the maximum ground area that can be covered by the resulting building, external dimension restrictions in conservation areas, the amount of side and rear curtilage that can be developed and the degree of alterations that can be made to roofs to allow greater use of loft space

• Questions 21 to 25 concern whether or not existing PDR for connections to Air Source Heat Pumps (ASHP’s) should be amended and extended, including reference to installation standards, the number of ASHP’s on properties and the use of ASHP’s for heating and cooling. Question 26 asks if it would be appropriate to have PDR for the installation of connections from individual buildings to heat networks?

• Questions 27 to 36 relate to impact assessments, for example Strategic Environmental Assessment and Equality Impact Assessment.

• A draft response to the consultation is provided as an appendix to this Technical Note. The consultation questions focus on the detailed aspects of the potential changes to PDR and do not ask specifically the respondents overall opinion on the appropriateness of using PDR to address the housing emergency. The draft response has generally advocated against the extension of PDR to create new housing without the need for planning consent. However support for some measures is given on case by case basis
• It should be noted that the number of developments in East Dunbartonshire where the potential new PDR (for rural homes and homes in town centres) would apply is extremely limited. Therefore, it is considered that the number of planning applications that would be ‘removed’ from the system in this authority area by the proposals would be minimal. Additionally, given that the existence of PDR does not remove the need to comply with other regulatory processes, such as building standards, officers are unconvinced that the proposed new PDR would be appealing enough to facilitate the creation of new homes that couldn’t already be achieved through the current system. This minimal contribution to the overall housing shortage should also be balanced against the loss of ability to ensure that all new housing is of a high quality and meets the standards set out in National Planning Framework 4 and the Local Development Plan
• With regards to potential adjustments to householder PDR, the draft response gives in principle support for increasing the scale of works that can be undertaken without the need for planning consent. However, the response notes that consultation paper does not contain any detail proposals, and that any proposed changes should be given thorough consideration and should be subject to a separate consultation process
• With regards to the questions on domestic Air Source Heat Pumps, the draft response is generally supportive of the proposed changes to extend PDR to increase the number of ASHP’s that can be installed without the need for planning consent. With regards to heat networks, the draft response is generally supportive of using PDR for the installation of connections from individual buildings to wider networks but that they should be subject to the same limitations as other infrastructure providers 
• No comments on the impact assessments are proposed

• Members are invited to consider the proposed response to the consultation and make comments before it is submitted to the Scottish Government’s Directorate for Planning, Architecture and Regeneration. Comments should be made by noon on 27 October 2025 and should be sent to richard.todd@eastdunbarton.gov.uk, also copying in development.plan@eastdunbarton.gov.uk