01Planning
Householder planning appeals for refused London homes
A refusal letter is an opinion, not a verdict, and a householder appeal is a short written process designed for owners. We read the officer's report, decide whether the case is worth appealing and, if it is, write the grounds and revise the drawings. From £495, fixed before we start.
From £495
- MCIAT chartered architectural technologists
- £2m professional indemnity insurance
- LABC Partnered
- ICO registered
02The fee
One fixed fee, published
What you get
- A written reading of the decision notice and the officer's report, with an honest view of the grounds
- The appeal form, grounds of appeal and a statement for the Planning Inspectorate
- Revised drawings where a small change removes the reason for refusal
- The dated list of documents the Inspectorate needs, assembled and lodged
- Replies to any questions from the Inspector
Our fee is the cost of preparing the case, with no VAT to add. A fresh planning application, if that is the better route, carries the council's own fee.
03How it runs
From the refusal letter to the Inspector's decision
12 weeks
Time to appeal against the refusal of a householder application, counted from the decision notice. Source: legislation.gov.uk
04Planning
Twelve weeks, counted from the decision notice
The window is short. An appeal against the refusal of a householder application must be made within 12 weeks of the date on the decision notice; for most other applications the period is six months. A missed deadline cannot be extended, so the first thing we do is read the date.
In the Inspectorate's own figures, a householder appeal decided on written representations took a median of 11.6 weeks in the June 2026 decisions, on 351 decisions. That is a quarter of a year in which the extension cannot start, which is why we say plainly when a redrawn application would reach a decision sooner.
05Planning
Appeal, or amend and resubmit?
Often the better answer is not an appeal. If the reasons for refusal are one or two details, such as a ridge height or a flank window, a revised application, or a minor amendment where the permission already stands, can be decided in eight weeks and does not risk a ruling that goes against you.
An appeal is right when the officer has misread the policy or the street, or when the design is as small as it can be and the refusal is still a matter of judgment. We set out both routes with their costs and times, then you decide; our planning drawings and retrospective applications cover the alternatives.
06Planning
Making the case on paper
A written appeal is judged on the document set: the decision notice, the officer's report, the drawings, the policies and your statement. We write against the reasons for refusal and nothing else, quoting the local plan and the national policy the council itself relied on, and showing where its own report supports you.
Strong drawings do half the work. A street elevation that shows the proposal beside its neighbours, a section that proves the neighbour's window keeps its light, a photograph taken from the angle the officer feared: these answer a reason for refusal faster than a paragraph does.
07The record
Figures that shape the job
12 weeks
Time to appeal against the refusal of a householder application, counted from the decision notice.
Source: Development Management Procedure Order 2015, article 37, checked 15 Oct 2026
6 months
Time to appeal against most other planning refusals, from the decision notice or end of the decision period.
Source: Development Management Procedure Order 2015, article 37, checked 15 Oct 2026
11.6 weeks
Median time to decide a householder appeal on written representations, for decisions made in June 2026.
Source: Planning Inspectorate statistical release, 30 July 2026, Annex B, checked 17 Oct 2026
351
Householder appeal decisions made on written representations in June 2026.
Source: Planning Inspectorate statistical release, 30 July 2026, Annex B, checked 17 Oct 2026
18 weeks
Median time for all written-representations appeals, over the 12 months to June 2026.
Source: Planning Inspectorate statistical release, 30 July 2026, section 6, checked 17 Oct 2026
8 weeks
Time a council has to decide a non-major application, the clock a resubmission would run on.
Source: Development Management Procedure Order 2015, article 34, checked 15 Oct 2026
£548
National householder application fee a fresh application would carry, from 1 April 2026.
Source: Ribble Valley Borough Council, national fee table from 1 April 2026, checked 17 Oct 2026
08Questions
What clients ask before they instruct us
What does an appeal cost with you?
Our fixed fee for preparing the case starts at £495, with no VAT to add. We confirm in writing whether anything else is payable before you instruct us.
Can I add new drawings at appeal stage?
Only if the change is so small that nobody is prejudiced. The Inspector decides the scheme the council refused. If the design must change, a new application is the right route, and we tell you at the outset.
Do I have to attend a hearing?
Not for a written-representations householder appeal, which is how most are decided. The Inspector visits the site and reads the papers, and you need not attend.
What if I miss the 12-week deadline?
The right to appeal is lost, and the usual course is a new application. This is why we ask you to send the decision notice as soon as it arrives.
Can you appeal a refusal you did not draw?
Yes. Send us the notice, the officer's report and the drawings, and we will say in writing whether the case is worth an appeal. If it needs a heritage statement, we say so.
09Related
Related services and guides
Send us the address of your house.
We look up the conservation area, listing and Article 4 position, then reply with a fixed fee. A message before 3pm is answered the same working day.