Guide to Drawings Required for a Planning Application

When submitting a planning application, the Local Planning Authority will require specific drawings to assess your proposal. These drawings typically include a location plan, a block (or site) plan and drawings for the proposed scheme.

Essentially the local authority will need to know what you are proposing to create and where. Note that the validation checklist of the local authority will clarify what is required – so check that all the items listed below are required. But depending upon the site, additional reports may be required. For now, we are concentrating on drawings. This might include other drawings such as a street scene drawing if access is changing. A lot of this is defined in the Town & Country Planning (Development Management Procedure) (England) Order 2015 or DMPO for short!

As a general rule, any fee proposals given by Planning Geek, will not include drawings.

Location Plan

A Location Plan helps identify precisely where your proposed development site is located within the local area. This is a requirement for all planning applications.

This plan must:

• Clearly identify the application site boundary with a solid red line. The redline must encompass the curtilage of the property including garaging, driveway, parking as applicable, and access thereto from the public highway
• Include any other land you own adjoining or close to the site, outlined in blue
• Be based on an up-to-date Ordnance Survey (OS) map. Must not be an OS map.
• Show the direction of North clearly indicated
• Be drawn to a recognised metric scale (usually 1:1250 to show 4ha or 1:2500 to show 16ha in rural areas), with a scale bar included
• Indicate original paper size (A4, A3 etc.) on drawings for printing and be uploaded/printed in colour
• Clearly show an authorised copier’s licence number together with copyright acknowledgements
• Clearly label at least two named roads (if possible) and surrounding buildings for context
• Include sufficient surrounding land, for example, land required for access, visibility splays, landscaping, parking areas, and open spaces needed for the development.

You can use sites such as UK Planning Maps to produce this. Other similar companies exist. Bear in mind that if you buy from one of the suppliers that pay to advertise on the Planning Portal your Site Plan will cost more, however it is exactly the same map as provided by all the Ordnance Survey licensed partners. Or your architectural person might be able to assist.

Block Plan (Site Plan)

A Block Plan provides detailed information about your proposed development in relation to the existing site and surroundings. Note that some local authorities or third party sites will call this a site plan. Both terms can be used interchangeably. This will usually always be required. Check the local validation checklist to confirm if your application requires this. If you are unsure, it is probably best to include this to avoid the application being delayed or rejected as being invalid.

Your Block Plan must:

• Be at an appropriate scale (typically 1:100, 1:200, or 1:500), clearly showing a scale bar
• Be as up to date as possible
• Indicate the direction of North
• Clearly outline the proposed development in relation to existing boundaries, buildings, roads, footpaths, and other site features, with accurate written dimensions
• Show all adjoining buildings, access arrangements, roads, and footpaths on adjacent land
• Clearly show any buildings to be demolished
• Show new buildings in context with adjacent buildings
• Include details of recycling and waste storage as applicable
• Identify public rights of way crossing or adjoining your site
• Accurately depict all trees (existing and proposed) on or near the site, highlighting those likely to affect or be affected by the development
• Specify all hard surfacing details (existing and proposed), including driveways, parking areas, and patios
• Indicate boundary treatments such as fences, walls, or hedges proposed
• Indicate original paper size (A4, A3 etc.) on drawings for printing and be uploaded/printed in colour
• Clearly show an authorised copier’s licence number together with copyright acknowledgements

You can use sites such as UK Planning Maps to produce this. Other similar companies exist. Bear in mind that if you buy from one of the suppliers that pay to advertise on the Planning Portal your Site Plan will cost more, however it is exactly the same map as provided by all the Ordnance Survey licensed partners.

Or your architectural person might be able to assist. But you might need to print off the map to add in additional features as required by the validation checklist. The more complicated sites need more information.

Architectural Drawings

Your Local Authority’s validation checklist typically requires detailed architectural drawings of proposed buildings, including:

• Elevations: Scale drawings of all sides of the building showing existing and proposed appearances, clearly labelled. Often required if there is a change to elevations or advertisements are involved
• Floor Plans: Detailed layouts for each floor level, clearly showing rooms, doors, windows, and other significant features, both existing and proposed. Often required if there is a change to floor plans
• Section Plans: Required if there is a proposed to be a change of levels within the site (part cut into the ground for example) or maybe where the topography is sloping
• Levels Plans: May be required for detached buildings or extensions that have different levels to the main building
• Roof Plans: May be required if there are changes to the roof
• Other drawings: May be required. For examples advertisement drawings, highways and parking plans etc.

Please note that there may be other plans within other reports such as a tree or landscape plans. The information on this site can be varied by local authorities, subject to legislation. Always check if you are not sure.

We recommend speaking with a architectural person to assist you with this. Planning Geek works with a number of third parties, but we are also happy to work with yours. We do not recommend getting an architectural company to submit the application as in the past many have experienced failed applications due to poor planning knowledge.  Of course, there are also great architectural practices who are fine with planning, In the same way there are poor planning consultants. We are just speaking from experience. More information on why you should engage a planning consultant can be found here. It may not be required to engage an architect unless the scheme is larger. An architectural person for basic drawings might be cheaper. There is a difference!

Getting an application correct is vital these days – this is where Planning Geek can assist.  Did you know that our consultants submit many applications on behalf of clients across the UK?

You can reach out to us here.

Page Updated: 11th April 2025