What Other Consents and Licences Do You Need?
Planning permission is the most well known consent for many of us, but it’s far from the only approval you may need when developing or extending your property. We’re going to take a look at a few of the common consents and licences you may need and how they work together, focusing on Scottish legislation.
If you take one message from this, let it be this: Even with planning permission, you may need additional consents such as building warrants, listed building consents, or protected species licences. It is always worth finding out what you will need as early in project planning as possible!
Planning Permission vs Building Warrants
Planning permission gives you the go-ahead from the local council to build or alter a property in terms of land use and appearance. Planning permission does not cover the technical safety or construction standards of your project - that’s covered by a building warrant. This is an approval covered by building regulations, and it is illegal to start work if you require a building warrant and don’t yet have one. This warrant focuses on your plans safety and energy standards, making sure your building will be safe, efficient and durable.
When do you need a building warrant?
If you are planning to construct, extend, alter, convert, or demolish a building you will likely need a building warrant from your council’s building standards department. For example…
Building a home extension
Removing a load-bearing wall
Converting a loft or garage into a room
Demolishing a structure
This is in addition to planning permission – each process is separate. Planning permission focuses on if you can build something in a certain place; the building warrant focuses on how you build it (to meet building standards).
Even if your project doesn’t need planning permission (for instance, some small works are “permitted development”), you still might need a building warrant. The key point is: don’t start any building work until you have the necessary warrant approval – doing so could lead to legal trouble and enforcement action.
Always check with your local Building Standards office if you’re unsure!
Listed Building Consents
If your property is a listed building or in a protected historic area, you will need listed building consent. Listed building consents protect buildings of special architectural or historic interest and it is a criminal offence to materially alter, extend or demolish a listed building without obtaining listed building consent from your council.
Even if you have planning permission, you will still need to get listed building consent to ensure the changes don’t harm the building’s character. This consent is processed by the local planning authority (often alongside your planning application) and involves input from heritage experts (notably, planning authorities are required to consult Historic Environment Scotland on certain listed building consent cases!).
The good news is there’s no fee for listed building consent, and applying for it is similar to the planning process – just remember it’s a separate approval you must secure for listed properties.
Demolition Consents
If you plan to demolish a structure as part of your project, you may need what’s called Conservation Area Consent (if the building is unlisted but located in a designated conservation area). This is a separate consent that controls the demolition of unlisted buildings in conservation areas, with a process much like listed building consent. Essentially, authorities want to ensure that tearing down a building won’t spoil the historic character of the area. Even outside of conservation areas, demolition often still requires a building warrant (as mentioned above) and adherence to safety standards.
The takeaway: check before you knock anything down.
Planning permission might approve a redevelopment “in principle,” but you must make sure you have the required consent to demolish existing structures.
Protected Species Licensing
Protected species licences cover wildlife that are legally protected, including but not limited to bats, otters, great crested newts, certain birds, and the animals’ habitats and resting places. If your project could disturb a protected species or their habitat, you will need to take them into account throughout your project.
The presence of a protected species on your site is a material consideration in planning decisions. This means the council must take wildlife into account when deciding your planning application.
The presence of protected species rarely means you can’t develop at all, but it can mean you need to adjust how and when you do the work, and take measures to avoid harming the species present. For example, all bat species in Scotland are designated as European Protected Species, and are protected under law from being harmed, killed or even disturbed. This legal protection remains in place whether or not you have planning permission.
If you have protected species on your site, you will need ecological surveys from an ecologist to support your planning application. Your ecologist will determine which (if any) species are present and provide a full report including mitigation measures to support your application, and will apply for Protected Species Licences needed.
Protected species licences are legal authorisations to disturb or relocate otherwise protected animals and it is a completely separate process from planning permission. NatureScot is responsible for issuing protected species licences.
If you suspect bats or badgers or any protected species on your site, get an ecologist’s help early, particularly as many surveys can only be completed at certain times of year.
Navigating Different Consents
Each of the consents mentioned (and those we haven’t - this isn’t an exhaustive list) serve a different purpose and involve different authorities. The key to navigating the different applications successfully, is coordination and timing. Here are our tips to help you through:
Plan Ahead and Consult Early: If you think your project might need multiple consents (for example, converting an old barn that is listed and has bats in it), start conversations early. Engage with an architect, an ecologist, and your local planning authority as soon as possible. Early consultation can highlight what you will need for each consent. For instance, a bat survey might be needed for planning, or detailed architectural drawings for listed building consent.
Parallel Applications: You will often apply for planning permission and listed building consent at roughly the same time. They are assessed in parallel, and the planning officer may coordinate with the heritage officer. Similarly, while you can’t finalise a bat licence until after planning is approved, you should submit your wildlife survey and mitigation plan during the planning stage so that everyone knows a licence will be needed. The planning authority will typically condition that you obtain the NatureScot licence before starting work. In some cases they might even consult NatureScot for advice on a sensitive protected species issue. Where ecological surveys are time bound, we will work with you to make sure you have the correct, in date surveys at the right time.
Different Regulators, Different Focus: Understand that each consent is handled by a different part of government, and one doesn’t override the other. Your local planning authority handles planning permission and listed building consents (with input from Historic Environment Scotland for heritage, as required). The building standards department (also part of the council) handles building warrants and will check structural and safety details. Meanwhile, NatureScot handles protected species licences for wildlife. They all care about your project but from different angles – land use, building safety, heritage preservation, and wildlife protection. By addressing each in full, you ensure your project is fully compliant.
No “One-Stop-Shop” Consent: It would be lovely if getting planning permission was a one-stop green light – but in reality, you will need multiple green lights. If you ignore one, it can stop your project. For example, you might have planning permission to extend your house, but if you start building without a warrant or disturb bats without a licence, you could face serious legal penalties. Conversely, getting a bat licence doesn’t mean you can skip planning permission or listed consent. Authorities will try to help you navigate them – for instance, the planning officer will remind you about building warrants or protected species if applicable, because they know all these pieces need to come together.
In short, coordination is key. When all the relevant bodies (the council planners, building inspectors, NatureScot, Historic Environment Scotland, etc.) are looped in at the right time, your way through the system will be much smoother. With good advice and early planning, even small homeowners’ projects can tick all the boxes without undue hassle.
It is never too early to reach out to us - we are happy to support at any stage of your proposed works, and the earlier we are involved the easier it is to work around survey season schedules!
If you need a bat survey (or think you might) get in touch with our team of specialist ecologists!
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