Do I Need Planning Permission.co.uk
Making the most of your Home

Hi all and tax in advance!

I have a cabin that I built 10 years ago and have been living in it ever since. the question is - Can I get a certificate of lawfulness to turn it OFFICALLY into my home?

researching, it states I can't if it is in a conservation area it won't work. Now, I dont think I am, but it is within: 'woodland spatial priority area',
'the national forest inventory',
'high vulnerability of the brown hairstreak butterfly'.
(are these classed as conservation areas?)

The cabin cannot be seen by neighbours and there is no public footpath nearby - I own the 13 acres surrounding it.

Access is difficult by car but a 4WD can get here easily. However, it would be difficult to get a fire engine or refuse collection truck to the cabin, which I heard creates a black mark against you in planning.

So, based upon all this, what do you think my odds are in getting a certificate and making this my OFFICIAL Home?

If you can provide proof it has been there for at least 4 years prior to April 2024, then you could submit a LDC application for an existing use. That would be on the basis it is exempt from any action.

But I thought the 4 year rule recently changed to the 10 year rule, no?

Only for works that have been completed after April.

That's positive news, Thanx for that!