Make a Planning Application

ALL documentation submitted with a planning application forms part of the application and will be included in both the hard copy of the file which the Council are obliged to make available for public inspection and the copy which is available on the Council’s website www.sdcc.ie

Caution should therefore be exercised in submitting documentation with your planning application which you may not wish to have publicly available.

How Do I Make a Planning Application? 

To obtain planning permission, the applicant must make a planning application.  There are four different types of permission.  An application may be made for: 

• Permission
• Outline Permission
• Permission consequent to the grant of outline permission.
• Retention 

The most common type of permission is for permission, often referred to as full permission. 

Can I consult with the Planning Authority in Advance? 

Yes, this is referred to as a pre-planning consultation and can be requested by phone, in writing or by e-mail.  The applicant must submit the following: 

• Name and Address
• Contact Details
• Site Address
• Site location map: Scale 1:2500 within the proposed site outline
• Approximate size of site
• Legal interest in site, i.e. Owner/ Purchaser
• Description of the proposed development 

   

Once this information has been submitted, the request will be lodged with the relevant area planner, who will confirm a date for an appointment.

Can I Employ an Agent to Apply for Permission on My Behalf?

Yes, very few people go through the planning process without availing of the services of an architect or agent.  This may take the form of somebody acting as your agent and dealing with the application in its entirety.  Alternatively, you may have someone prepare the plans/ drawings for you and you will submit the application yourself.

What Must I do in Order to Make a Valid Application?

In order to make a valid application you must submit the following: 

• Completed Application Form
• Correct Fee
• Site Notice
• Newspaper Notice
• Site Location Map (6 copies)
• Plans/ Drawings (6 copies) – except for outline permission
• Approved Newspapers for This Area

   

What Should the Documents Submitted with My Application Show? 

Social and Affordable Housing Certificate
It is important to note that before applying for planning permission, applicants should ensure that they have applied for or obtained their Certificate of Exemption in cases where development does not apply to the requirements for the provision of social and affordable housing on residentially zoned land or a mixture of residentially zoned land and other uses.

Site Location Map (6 copies)
The Site Location Map must be marked or coloured so as to identify clearly the land or structure to which the application relates and the boundaries thereon.  The Site Location Map should be on an Ordinance Survey map with the number of the Ordinance Survey map clearly indicated thereon.  The scale of the map should be not less than 1:1000 in urban areas and 1:2500 in rural areas.   

Site/Layout Map (6 copies)
Except for Outline Permission
Plans and drawings should contain detailed structural drawings of floor plans, elevation and sections and such other particulars as are necessary to describe the works or structure to which the application relates.  These must be drawn to a scale not less than 1:200 
 
Public/ Site Notice
A copy of the site notice must be submitted with each planning application.  The site notice must be placed on site for five weeks from the date of receipt of the planning application.  If it becomes illegible or is removed, it must be replaced immediately as failure to do so will invalidate the application.  The site notice must be located at the entrance to the private road where it meets the public road, and at the entrance to the site. For sample of Site Notice see below.

Site Layouts, plans, maps and drawings

Please note that the same scale must be used for the entirety of any individual map or drawing submitted in accordance with Article 22 and 22A of the planning and Development Regulations 2001, as amended (the Regulations). Where a structure or feature is contiguous to the proposed development (adjoining / touching / sharing a common boundary), the accuracy should be the same as if it were within the red line boundary in accordance with Article 23(1)(d) of the regulations.

 
Newspaper Notice
A copy or original of the newspaper notice must be submitted with the application.  The application must be lodged with the Planning Department within two weeks of the publication date of the newspaper. For Approved Newspapers see Planning Forms
 
All notices must contain,  

• As a heading, the name of the Planning Authority and shall include the name of the applicant;
• The nature of application i.e. permission, outline or permission following the grant of outline permission;
• The location, townland or postal address of the land or structure
• A Brief Description of the Development. 

 
The notice must state that the application may be inspected or purchased at a fee not exceeding the reasonable cost of making a copy at the offices of the Planning Authority during its' public opening hours and a submission or observation may be made to the Planning Authority in writing on payment of the prescribed fee within the period of 5 weeks beginning on the date of receipt by the authority of the application. 

Is Same Day Validation available?

Yes.  Same Day Validation is available for certain types of applications.  This service is available every Wednesday from 10.00 a.m. to 12.30 p.m. Read More

 Once an application is Received by the Planning Department, what happens next?

The planning decision process usually takes 8 weeks.  The application will go through the following stages: 

• When the planning application is received, the application will be examined to ensure everything is correct and in order, valid or invalid (if found to be invalid, the application will be returned).
• The site notice must be kept up and legible for 5 weeks from the date notice has been erected.  The planner will visit the site possibly on a number of occasions during this time to check the site notice (if the site notice is found to be invalid due to site notice, the application will be returned).
• Submissions or observations will be accepted up to 5 weeks from the date of receipt of the application.
• After this, the planner will begin to assess the application and write his/her report where a recommendation is made.
• Application and report then go to the appropriate levels for approval and signing where the decision is made.
• The decision letter will be sent by registered post, normally within 8 weeks from the date the application is received.
• If permission is granted and if no appeal is made after 4 weeks the Planning Authority will issue a grant of permission. 
• If Additional Information is requested and indeed, possible clarification of Additional Information, the applicant has up to 6 months (from the original date the Additional Information was requested) to submit the response to both.
• Any decision made can be appealed by the Applicant or objectors, to An Bord Pleanála within 4 weeks from the decision date.
• A person who has an interest in land ADJOINING land in respect of which a decision to grant permission has been made, may apply to An Bord Pleanála for Leave to Appeal against that decision.

Submissions/Observations.

Any person or body, on payment of the prescribed fee, may make a submission/observation, in writing, to a Planning Authority in relation to a planning application. The submission/observation must be made within the period of 5 weeks beginning on the date of receipt by the Planning Authority of the application.

The following should be noted:

Defamation Notice

Persons making a submission/observation on a planning application should be aware that comments involving allegations of any kind against a named or otherwise identifiable person or organisation may be viewed as defamatory by the subject of the comments. Persons may be sued directly for any defamatory allegations in any submission/observation and should avoid making such allegations. Any submission/observation made to the Planning Authority is made available for public inspection both in the hard copy file and on the Council’s website. In the event of any potentially defamatory allegation giving rise to legal action against it, the Planning Authority may seek indemnity from the person making the allegation.