Toolkit

Tools for planning and building projects

Free tools made by Parallel Architecture for understanding planning permission, permitted development, Building Regulations, party walls, project teams and building contracts in England. Each gives an answer without asking for an email address, shows the law behind each step and says what it cannot know. Nothing you enter leaves your browser, except a postcode sent to look up the planning data for it.

Before you design

What affects the site, what you can build, and what permission it needs.

• Planning constraints checkerWhat planning constraints affect your property?Check conservation areas, listed buildings, Article 4 directions, flood zones, green belt, National Parks, National Landscapes and other planning constraints from a postcode.England only. No sign-up. Nothing stored.
• Planning permission route finderWhat planning permission or consent does your project need?Which planning permission or consent a type of project needs, the council's fee, the statutory determination period and what to submit, for owners and buyers.England only. No sign-up. Nothing stored.
• Permitted development checkerCan you build it without planning permission?Tests an extension, loft, porch or outbuilding against the permitted development limits of Classes A to G and AA.England only. No sign-up. Nothing stored.
• CIL checkerWill you pay the Community Infrastructure Levy?Whether the levy is likely, which exemption applies, and which forms to send before work starts.England only. No sign-up. Nothing stored.

Before you build

The approvals, notices and people the work needs before it starts.

• Building Regulations route finderWhich Building Regulations route does your project need, and who holds the duties?Whether your project is exempt, can be signed off by the installer or needs building control, with the timings and who holds the legal duties.England only. No sign-up. Nothing stored.
• Party wall checkerDoes the Party Wall Act apply to your work, and which notices do you need?Whether the Party Wall Act applies, which notices you need, how much notice each needs, and the dates to serve them by.England only. No sign-up. Nothing stored.
• Project mapWho do you need on your project, and when?Who your project needs, when each is active, and the waiting periods set by law.England only. No sign-up. Nothing stored.

How to deliver it

How the work is bought, on which contract, and the brief that starts it.

• Procurement and contract chooserWhich procurement route and building contract suit your project?The procurement route for your project, a shortlist of building contracts with editions and prices, and who administers the contract.England only. No sign-up. Nothing stored.
• Project brief builderWrite a clear brief for your building projectYour project set out as a professional brief, ready to print or send to a designer.England only. No sign-up. Nothing stored.

The tools give general guidance on the law in England from the answers you enter; they are not advice on your project. Website terms.