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Four in five shops could be converted to homes under permitted development rights, research finds

The majority of shops and commercial premises on high streets can now be converted into homes without planning permission following new rules introduced by the government this week, a report has found.

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The government has expanded PDR to include the majority of commercial premises on high streets (picture: Getty)
The government has expanded PDR to include the majority of commercial premises on high streets (picture: Getty)
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Research by @theTCPA and UCL has found that the majority of shops on high streets can now be converted to homes under the government’s expansion of permitted development rights #UKhousing

Research by the Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA) and University College London (UCL) found that 80.3% of shops and commercial premises, including restaurants, cafes, offices and gyms, will fall under the new permitted development rules.

Under permitted development rights (PDR), developers are able to convert certain types of buildings into homes without gaining full planning permission.

On 1 August, the government expanded these rules to cover the vast majority of commercial premises on high streets, as well as light industrial units.

The TCPA’s research focused on four case study areas – Barnet, Crawley, Huntingdonshire, and Leicester – and found the percentage of properties that could be converted to homes was as high as 89% in Barnet, compared with 77% in Leicester and Crawley and 75% in Huntingdonshire.


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Fiona Howie, chief executive of the TCPA, said: “We recognise the need for more homes and the desire to regenerate high streets. But we need new homes to be high quality and for town centres to be able to provide a mixture of services and amenity space.

“This latest expansion of PDR further reduces the ability of local authorities and communities to shape their local areas. This is not the right approach if government really wants to ‘build back better’ and to revitalise our high streets.”

Meanwhile, insurer Zurich has warned that the further expansion of PDR could create “a swathe of sub-standard homes that are vulnerable to climate change”.

It said more than 64,700 homes have been created as part of office-to-resi conversions over the past five years and that these homes are particularly vulnerable to overheating due to poor design such as a lack of ventilation and shading.

A 2019 report by the Climate Change Committee found that one in five homes in England already dangerously overheats during heatwaves.

The expansion of PDR has also been criticised by MPs sitting on the Housing, Communities and Local Government Select Committee, which recently called on the government to halt its plans and carry out a review of the rules.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has been approached for comment.

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