| SUMMARY GUIDE TO USE CLASSES ORDER AND PERMITTED CHANGES OF USE |
| Use Classes Order 1987 including Amendments |
Description |
Conditions (See Note 1) |
| A1 Shops |
Shops, retail warehouses, hairdressers, undertakers, travel and ticket agencies, post offices, pet shops, sandwich bars, showrooms, domestic hire shops, funeral directors etc. |
No permitted change except to mixed use as a shop and single flat (see note 2) and vice versa |
| A2 |
Financial and Professional Services.Banks, building societies, estate and employment agencies, professional and financial services, betting offices |
Permitted change to A1 where a ground floor display window exists. Also as above to a mixed use as a single flat and A2 use and vice versa (see note 2) |
| A3 Restaurants and Cafes |
Restaurants, snack bars, cafes |
Permitted change to A1 or A2 |
| A4 Drinking Establishments |
Pubs and bars |
Permitted change to A1, A2, A3 |
| A5 Hot Food Takeaways |
Hot food takeaway |
Permitted change to A1, A2, A3 |
| B1 Business (a) |
Offices, not within A2 |
Permitted change to B8 where no more than 235m² |
| (b) |
Research and development, studios, laboratories, high technology |
Permitted change to B8 where no more than 235m² |
| (c) |
Light Industry |
Permitted change to B8 where no more than 235m² |
|
B2 General Industry
(See Note 4) |
General Industry |
Permitted change to B1 or B8
B8 where no more than 235m² |
| B8 Storage or Distribution |
Wholesale warehouses, repositories |
Permitted change to B1
where no more than 235m² |
| C1 Hotels |
Hotels, boarding and guest houses |
No permitted change |
| C2 Residential Institutions |
Residential schools and colleges, hospitals and convalescent/nursing homes |
No permitted change |
|
C2A
Secure Residential Institution |
Use for a provision of secure residential accommodation, including use as a prison, young offenders institution, detention centre, secure training centre, custody centre, short term holding centre, secure hospital, secure local authority accommodation or use as a military barracks |
No permitted change |
| C3 Dwelling Houses |
Use as a dwelling house (whether or not as a sole or main residence by:
a) a single person, or by people forming a single household;
b) not more than 6 residents living together as a single household where care is provided for residents: or
c) not more than 6 residents living together as a single household where no care is provided (other than a use within C4) |
Permitted change to C4 |
| C4 Houses in Multiple Occupation |
Use of a dwelling house by not more than 6 residents as a house of multiple occupation (see note 4). |
Permitted change to C3 |
|
D1 Non-residential
Institutions |
Places of worship, church halls, clinics, health centres, crèches, day nurseries, consulting rooms, museums, public halls, libraries, art galleries, exhibition halls, law court, Non residential education and training centres |
No permitted change |
| D2 Assembly and Leisure |
Cinemas, music and concert halls, dance, sports halls, baths, skating rinks, gymnasiums. Other indoor and outdoor sports and leisure uses, bingo halls |
No permitted change |
|
Sui Generis
(See Note 3) |
Theatres, houses in multiple paying occupation, hostels providing no significant element of care, scrap yards. Petrol filling stations and shops selling and/or displaying motor vehicles. Retail warehouse clubs, nightclubs, launderettes, dry cleaners, taxi businesses, amusement centres, Casinos |
No permitted change
Permitted Change - Sui Generis to D2 |
Notes: Updated 14 October 2010
1. The Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) Order 1987 is the principal order which has been subject to a number of subsequent amendments. Changes within a specific class do not require planning permission provided that the use subsists, the planning permission exists and no restrictive condition is attached. The 2006 amendments moved casinos from D2 to Sui Generis, introduced C2A for secure residential institutions and law court as a D1 specified use. The 2010 amendments alter C3 and introduce a C4 use class. The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Amendment) (No2) (England) Order 2010 (SI No 2134) introduced a permitted change from C3 to C4.
2. Any operational development, such as effecting external appearance would, requires consent. Ground floor rooms with a shop window would need consent to change the whole or part of the ground floor for use as a single flat. For a further explanation see Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 1995.
3. Sui Generis is a use not within a specific class.
4. Definition of a House in Multiple Occupation is as in Section 254 of the Housing Act 2004. Broadly this is when tenanted living accommodation is occupied as an only or main residence, where the occupiers are not related and share one or more basic amenity |