For owners and developers before an application
Pre-Application Planning Advice in London: Is It Worth It?
Sviatoslav JerdetchiiCEO & Founder of Craftex. Updated , 4 min read
The short answer
Pre-application advice is the council's informal written view on your scheme before you apply. It is optional and not binding, but for anything beyond a routine scheme it usually pays for itself.
- Each London borough sets its own fees; Lambeth's 2026/27 range is £491 to £21,832 including VAT.
- Send sketch-stage drawings and specific questions, not a finished design.
- Lambeth, for example, targets a written answer within 35 days for most enquiries.
- Skip it when a permitted development right clearly covers the scheme.
Most refused schemes could have been fixed for the price of a sketch. The problem is that nobody asked the council early enough. Pre-application advice is how you ask.
It is the council's informal, written view on your scheme before you submit. Almost every London borough offers it, for a fee. It is not binding and not required.
But it tells you what officers will support while changing the design is still cheap. Thinking of a pre-app? Book a site visit and we will help you decide if it is worth it.
What pre-application advice gets you
A pre-app gives you an early read on how officers see the scheme. It does not give you a decision.
| You get | You don't get |
|---|---|
| An officer's view on the principle: this use, this scale, here | A decision that binds the council |
| Their concerns on design, height, heritage, neighbours and trees | The views of neighbours, councillors and consultees |
| A list of what the full application will need | Design help: officers react, they don't design |
| Often a meeting, and on big schemes a series of them | Certainty on timing for the full application |
When pre-application advice in London is worth it
A pre-app costs a fee and a few weeks. A refused application costs the application fee, the design and report fees and months. That is before any appeal.
Usually worth it when:
- The scheme creates new homes or is bigger than a householder extension.
- The site is in a conservation area, near a listed building or in a protected view.
- Policy is open to interpretation: height, density, loss of a use, a backland plot.
- You are about to buy or sell land on the strength of what planning will allow.
- The council has refused something similar nearby.
Often not worth it when:
- A permitted development right clearly covers the scheme. A lawful development certificate or a prior approval is the right tool.
- The change is small, policy-compliant and has plenty of precedent on the street.
- You need a decision fast and the scheme is straightforward. Pre-app adds weeks.
For buildings that may not need full planning at all, see Class MA and permitted development.
What it costs and how long it takes
Each borough sets its own fees and service levels. Lambeth's 2026/27 schedule shows the typical spread.
Schemes above 50 homes in Lambeth get a bespoke fee. Follow-up advice is charged separately. Other boroughs differ, so check your borough's current schedule before you budget.
I and my husband are very satisfied with Craftex's service and customer support. We bought a house in Hampstead and wanted to redesign and renovate it. On our initial free consultation with Sviat, we found out that we actually can do loft conversion and rear extension and add value to the property straight away. We worked with the Craftex design team to bring our vision to life and deliver planning approvals. At that time guys started stripping out to save time on the construction programme as we wanted to move in ASAP. We worked with very experienced project director Konstantin who was responsible for all aspects of project delivery from design to construction with a very good eye on details and customer care. We saved a lot of money by having professional advice from the start. Project management and quality at Craftex are at the highest level. Many thanks to Craftex Team.
How pre-app works, step by step
- Find your borough's service. Each London borough runs its own, with its own forms and fee scale.
- Prepare the pack. See the checklist below. The better the pack, the more useful the answer.
- Submit and pay. The council confirms it is valid and allocates an officer.
- Meet, if offered. Bring the person who can change the design, not just the one who presents it.
- Receive the written response. Read it twice, then read it for what it does not say.
- Decide what to change. Revise the scheme, ask for a follow-up or rethink the route.
What to send the council
A strong pre-app pack is short and specific. Don't over-design it. A fully detailed scheme invites detailed objections.
Bigger schemes: PPAs, design review and the Mayor
As schemes grow, pre-app becomes a process rather than a letter.
- Planning Performance Agreements. A paid agreement setting meetings, timescales and resources. Common on major schemes.
- Design review. Many boroughs send significant schemes to an independent design review panel before submission.
- The Mayor of London. Schemes of more than 150 homes, or buildings over 30 metres high outside the City, are referable to the Mayor. The GLA runs its own pre-application service. The 2026 London housing measures propose wider referral, so check the current thresholds.
- Community engagement. For bigger schemes, councils expect you to talk to neighbours before you submit and report what you heard.
How to read the response
Officers write carefully. These phrases deserve a close read.
- "Could be supported subject to…" is encouraging, if you can meet what follows.
- "Concerns regarding…" means fix it, or expect it to be a reason for refusal.
- "Insufficient information to comment" often means your pack dodged the hard question.
- Silence on a topic is not approval. It may not have been looked at yet.
Assume your pre-app may become public. Councils can be asked to release it under information requests. Flag anything sensitive and ask about the borough's policy first.
Where pre-app fits in the bigger picture
Pre-app is one step in a route that starts earlier. Before you ask the council anything, know what your land could take. Read what can I build on my land. Before you design, check the scheme makes money. Read development appraisal, GDV and residual land value.
Our planning consultancy team takes schemes from pre-application advice to a decision. Because we also build, the scheme officers see is one our own team has priced. Our Preconstruction Director, Martin Hickey, brings more than 50 years in construction to every appraisal. We take development schemes from £3M to £150M GDV.
Want a straight view before the council gives theirs? Book a site visit and we will test the scheme with you first.
A pre-app pack that gets useful answers
- Site location plan and photographs, including views from neighbours
- Existing plans and elevations, or a measured outline
- Sketch plans, sections and elevations you can still change
- A short statement: uses, number of homes and policy fit
- Planning history on the site and similar consents nearby
- Your specific questions, such as "Is a set-back fourth storey acceptable?"
