Commencement notice

Section 93G of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (TCPA) requires persons to notify local authorities of the date they intend to commence development under a planning permission (including pursuant to a section 73 variation permission). This is known as a Commencement Notice.

Where development is not commenced on the date provided in the notice, the developer must serve a new notice with an updated anticipated commencement date. A developer can also serve a new commencement notice where they have changed their intended date of commencement (in advance of commencing).

You can fill in and submit a Commencement notice online, however please note that if you have not complied with any and all of the pre-commencement conditions attached to the planning permission in question, you will not be permitted to commence development and any works you carry out will be unlawful.

Failure to submit a Commencement Notice prior to works commencing is served is guilty of an offence and may be liable for a fine up to £1,000.