Two regimes, one front wall
A burglar alarm bell box or a camera on the front elevation is usually a minor job. On a listed building, or in a conservation area, it can raise a question that most homeowners never meet: is consent needed? This article summarises the Planning Portal pages on home security alarms and CCTV, the Planning Portal page on conservation areas, the GOV.UK planning practice guidance on the historic environment (paragraphs revised 23 July 2019) and sections 7 and 9 of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as published on legislation.gov.uk. The Planning Portal states that its guidance relates to the planning regime for England and that policy in Wales may differ. The 1990 Act sections are marked as applying to England and Wales; Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate systems that are outside this article.
Alarms: not normally a planning matter
The Planning Portal says that planning permission is not normally required to install a security alarm, but that anyone living in a listed building or conservation area should check with the local planning authority. It adds that an alarm system involving electrical work must comply with the relevant standards in the Approved Documents, and points to Approved Document P on electrical safety.
CCTV: conditions attached to the general rule
For CCTV, the Planning Portal again says planning permission is not normally required, with the same caution for listed buildings and conservation areas. It lists conditions: up to 16 cameras on buildings, with no more than four on a single wall; a maximum camera size of 0.75 by 0.25 by 0.25 metres; no placement less than 2.5 metres above ground level or within 10 metres of another camera; and no protrusion of more than one metre or position within one metre of another wall. Building regulations do not generally apply to CCTV, according to the same page, but a new electrical circuit is notifiable work that should be completed by a competent person or checked by a building control body.
These figures come from the Planning Portal’s introductory guide, which describes itself as not a definitive source of legal information. Camera placement and privacy are separate questions, dealt with in Home CCTV and Data Protection: What the ICO Actually Requires From Camera Owners.
Listed buildings: listed building consent is separate
The GOV.UK planning practice guidance says that listed building consent and planning permission are separate regimes, and that some works need both, one or neither. Consent is required for any works to demolish part of a listed building, or to alter or extend it in a way that affects its character as a building of special architectural or historic interest, whether or not planning permission is also needed. For all grades, unless the list entry says otherwise, the listing covers the entire building, inside and outside, and may cover objects fixed to it and curtilage buildings or structures. There is no fee for a listed building consent application.
Section 7 of the 1990 Act states the restriction in statutory terms: no one may carry out works of demolition, alteration or extension that would affect the character of a listed building unless the works are authorised. Whether a particular alarm box, camera bracket, cable run or drilled fixing affects character is a judgement for the local planning authority, which is why the Planning Portal advises checking before starting.
The offence and its limited defence
Section 9 makes it an offence to contravene section 7, and the GOV.UK guidance confirms that carrying out affecting works without consent is a criminal offence. The section provides a defence where works were urgently necessary for safety, health or the preservation of the building, where repair or temporary support was not practicable, where the works were limited to the minimum immediately necessary, and where written notice justifying them was given to the local planning authority as soon as reasonably practicable. The listed penalties are up to six months’ imprisonment or a fine on summary conviction, or up to two years’ imprisonment or a fine on conviction on indictment. The defence is framed around urgent safety and preservation.
Conservation areas: gates, walls and trees
A conservation area is a separate designation. The Planning Portal says that in a conservation area planning permission for relevant demolition, commonly called conservation area consent, is generally needed to demolish a gate, fence, wall or other means of enclosure with a height of one metre or more next to a highway, waterway or open space, or two metres or more elsewhere, subject to exemptions. That matters for anyone replacing a low boundary with a higher secure one. Trees in a conservation area are also protected: the local planning authority must be notified six weeks before work begins, which affects trimming a hedge or tree to clear a camera’s view. Boundary height limits for new fences and gates are covered in Front Fences, Walls and Gates: The Height Limits That Apply to Boundary Security in England.
A sensible order of work
- Check the National Heritage List entry and ask the local planning authority whether the property is listed or in a conservation area.
- If it is, describe the proposed alarm, camera and cable positions in writing and ask whether listed building consent or other permission is needed.
- Use an installer who is registered with a competent person scheme or a building control body when new electrical circuits are involved.
The bottom line
In England, alarms and CCTV are not normally a planning matter, but that general rule carries an explicit exception for listed buildings and conservation areas. Listed building consent is a separate regime, works that affect a listed building’s character without it are a criminal offence, and gates, walls and trees in a conservation area carry their own controls. A written enquiry to the local planning authority before drilling or fixing anything settles which rules apply. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own arrangements.
Sources
- Planning Portal, “Home security alarm”
- Planning Portal, “CCTV”
- Planning Portal, “Conservation Areas”
- GOV.UK, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, “Historic environment” (planning practice guidance)
- legislation.gov.uk, “Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990, section 7 (Restriction on works affecting listed buildings)”
- legislation.gov.uk, “Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990, section 9 (Offences)”