Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (TCPA) Explained

What the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 does

The Act sets the legal rules, and policy fills in the detail. Section 70(2) tells a council to have regard to the development plan, so far as material, and to "any other material considerations". In England, the National Planning Policy Framework is one of those considerations. Our NPPF guide covers the policy side.

The Act is split into Parts. Three of them matter most to a developer. They are Part III on control over development, Part VII on enforcement and Part VIII on special controls.

The Act covers England and Wales, but many sections now set different rules for each. Section 171B is one example: ten years in England, four in Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own planning laws. This guide deals with England.

Section 57: when you need planning permission

Section 57(1) is one sentence long. It says "planning permission is required for the carrying out of any development of land". Everything then turns on what counts as development, which section 55(1) defines in two parts.

1. Operations. "Building, engineering, mining or other operations in, on, over or under land". Under section 55(1A), building operations include demolition, rebuilding and structural alterations.
2. Change of use. "The making of any material change in the use of any buildings or other land". Turning an office block into flats is a typical example.

Not all development needs an application to the council. Section 58(1) lets permission be granted by a development order, a local development order or a neighbourhood development order. Permitted development rights work this way, including the office-to-home route.

Where you do apply, section 70(1) lets the council grant permission unconditionally, grant it subject to conditions or refuse it. A refusal or a harsh condition can be appealed under section 78. Our planning appeal guide covers that route.

Most permissions also carry a clock. Section 91 says development must be begun within "the applicable period", which is three years in England. The council can direct a longer or shorter period. Miss it, and the permission lapses.

S73 and s96A: changing a permission you hold

Schemes change after consent. Section 73 covers applications to build "without complying with conditions subject to which a previous planning permission was granted". It is the usual route for a changed drawing list, new opening hours or a revised phasing condition.

Under section 73(2), the council "shall consider only the question of the conditions". If it agrees to new conditions, or none, it grants a fresh permission on those terms. If it would keep the same conditions, it must refuse. The Act sets three limits.

1. Expired permissions. Section 73(4) means it cannot be used once the time to start has run out and nothing was begun.
2. No extra time in England. Section 73(5) bars any change that extends the time to start or to apply for reserved matters.
3. Biodiversity gain. Section 73(2B) says it cannot switch off the biodiversity gain condition.

Smaller changes go through section 96A. The council may change a permission "if they are satisfied that the change is not material". It must weigh the change together with any earlier ones against the permission as first granted. Only a person with an interest in the land can apply.

The Act does not define "material". That judgement sits with the council, so the same change can pass in one borough and fail in another. Our guide to section 73 and non-material amendments shows which route suits which change.

S106 planning obligations

A section 106 obligation is a promise tied to the land. Section 106(1) lets "any person interested in land" enter into one, by agreement with the council or by a one-sided undertaking. It can do four things.

1. Restrict. Limit the development or use of the land in a specified way.
2. Require works. Make you carry out specified operations or activities on the land.
3. Require a use. Make the land be used in a specified way, such as affordable homes.
4. Require payment. Pay sums to the council on set dates or periodically.

Three features matter to a buyer. Under section 106(3), the obligation binds the person who gave it and "any person deriving title from that person". It must be made by deed under section 106(9). It is enforceable by injunction under section 106(5).

If required works are not done, section 106(6) lets the council enter the land, do them and recover its costs. It must give at least 21 days' notice first. A deed can release a seller once they no longer own the land, under section 106(4).

An obligation can only justify a permission if it passes three tests in regulation 122 of the Community Infrastructure Levy Regulations 2010. It must be necessary to make the scheme acceptable, directly related to it and fairly related in scale and kind. Our guide to CIL and Section 106 covers how the sums are set.

Changing an obligation later is possible. Under section 106A, it can be modified or discharged by a new deed with the council. Without agreement, you can apply once the relevant period has passed: five years from the date of the obligation, unless regulations prescribe another period.

S171B enforcement time limits after April 2024

Section 171B sets how long a council has before "no enforcement action may be taken". The Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 changed it for England. Section 115 of that Act came into force on 25 April 2024.

The old rule has not vanished. Regulation 5 of S.I. 2024/452 keeps the four-year limit where the works were substantially completed before 25 April 2024. The same applies where a change of use to a single house began before that date. Wales keeps four years for both.

There is also a second chance for the council. Under section 171B(4)(b), it can act again at any time if it took enforcement action on that breach in the previous four years. A notice that failed on a technicality can be served again.

The 2024 changes added a softer tool. Under section 172ZA, an enforcement warning notice can be issued where permission would have a "reasonable prospect" of being granted. It asks for an application within a set period. A full enforcement notice under section 172 must be served at least 28 days before it takes effect.

Once the time limit has passed, the use or works become lawful under section 191(2). You can then apply for a certificate of lawfulness to prove it. Our guides to retrospective planning permission and certificates of lawfulness cover both routes. On a purchase, ask for dated evidence of when the works were finished.

S215 notices for untidy land

Section 215 is about the state of land, not its use. If the "amenity of a part of their area" is "adversely affected by the condition of land", the council may serve a notice. It goes to the owner and the occupier.

The notice lists the steps needed and the time allowed. It takes effect on a date it states, at least 28 days after it is served. Stalled sites, empty buildings and broken hoardings are the usual targets. An appeal can be made to the magistrates' court in England on four grounds, under section 217(1).

1. No harm to amenity. The condition of the land does not adversely affect the area.
2. Lawful activity. The condition results, in the ordinary course of events, from a lawful use or lawful operations.
3. Too much. The steps go beyond what is needed to stop the harm.
4. Too little time. The period to do the work is shorter than is reasonable.

While an appeal is pending, the notice has no effect, under section 217(3). If it is upheld and ignored, section 216 makes non-compliance an offence. In England, that means a fine on conviction. If the owner still does not comply, a further daily fine applies: up to one-tenth of £5,000 or level 4, whichever is greater.

Section 219 lets the council do the work itself and recover its costs from "the person who is then the owner". A buyer can inherit that bill. Check the council's records for a section 215 notice before you exchange on a vacant site.

How the Act shapes a development scheme

Read the Act as a sequence, not a list. Each stage of a scheme meets a different section, and each one can cost time or money if it is missed. This is the order we check a site in.

1. Is it development? Test the scheme against sections 55 and 57, then check permitted development under section 58.
2. When must it start? Plan the start date around section 91, because section 73(5) blocks any extension in England.
3. What binds the land? Read every condition and any section 106 deed before exchange, not after.
4. Is anything unlawful? Date any works and changes of use against section 171B and the 25 April 2024 cut-off.
5. Is the site exposed? Keep a vacant site secure and tidy, so section 215 never comes into play.

The safest scheme is one costed before it is drawn. At Allitsen Road in St John's Wood, a vacant corner building became four costed schemes with a planning strategy in four weeks. Our Development Director, Rob Barton, took 10,000+ homes through planning in his previous roles.

Holding a site, a consent you need to change or a building with an unclear planning history? Send us the address for a free site appraisal. We read the permission, the conditions and any deed against the Act. You then know whether you need permission, a s73 application, a s106 change or cover for an enforcement risk.