What will living in a conservation area mean for my home improvement project?

Conservation areas have been designated as being of special architectural or historic interest where maintaining the quality of the buildings and preserving the appearance of the locale is important.

The work you will be able to carry out on your home can be slightly more restrictive if you live in a conservation area, especially on the exterior, and even more so if an Article 4 Direction applies to your area (your local planning authority will be able to tell you if this is the case).

For planning permission in conservation areas, speak to your conservation officer or the planning department in your local council long before starting work.

Types of work which will probably need planning permission are:

• Demolition of a building
• Cutting down or lopping of trees
• Adding extensions
• Removing dormer windows
• Adding stone cladding

Building regulations in a conservation area

Building regulations compliance is no different when living in a conservation area.

Further information

Conservation areas – the Historic England website

Cadw - for advice on Welsh historic buildings