Outline Planning Permission Explained: Reserved Matters and Timescales

Outline planning permission is a way to lock in the principle of development on a site before you commit to full design detail. Instead of submitting every elevation, material and landscaping plan up front, you ask the council to decide whether the proposed use and amount of development are acceptable. The detailed design then comes later as one or more reserved matters applications.

This guide explains how outline permission works in England, what the five reserved matters are, the usual timescales, and when outline is more useful than a full planning application. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own rules, so check the guidance that applies to your site if it is outside England.

What is outline planning permission?

An application for outline planning permission allows a decision on the general principles of how a site can be developed. If outline permission is granted, it is subject to conditions requiring later approval of one or more reserved matters. In other words, outline confirms that the development is acceptable in principle; it does not give you a green light to start building until the reserved matters (and any other conditions) have been dealt with.

By contrast, a full planning application decides the detailed proposal in one go. Once full permission is granted, and subject to any conditions, you do not need a further design approval from the planning authority before starting work (other consents, such as building regulations approval, may still be needed).

Outline is most often used for larger or more speculative schemes, where the applicant wants certainty on principle before spending heavily on detailed drawings. Our guide to the different types of planning application sets out how outline sits alongside full, householder and other routes.

The five reserved matters

Reserved matters are the aspects of a proposal that you can leave out of an outline application and submit later. In England they are defined in the Development Management Procedure Order as:

• Access — how vehicles, cycles and pedestrians get to and around the site, and how that connects to the surrounding network.
• Appearance — the visual impression of the buildings, including form, architecture, materials, colour and texture.
• Landscaping — treatment of land other than buildings, including planting, screening, earthworks and amenity features.
• Layout — how buildings, routes and open spaces are arranged in relation to each other and to neighbouring land.
• Scale — the height, width and length of each building in relation to its surroundings.

You can reserve all five, or only some of them. You can also choose to submit details of a reserved matter with the outline application itself. Unless you mark those details as illustrative only, the council will treat them as part of the application and cannot then reserve that matter for later approval.

What you still need to submit at outline stage

Even when matters are reserved, an outline application is not a blank form. National guidance expects information about the proposed use or uses and the amount of development for each use, so the council can judge the principle of development. If access is reserved, the application must still state the area or areas where access points to the site will be situated.

Councils can also decide that, in the circumstances of the case, the application should not be considered separately from some or all of the reserved matters. If so, they must notify you within one month of receiving the application and specify the further details they need.

As with any planning application, you will need a completed application form, the correct fee, ownership certificates, plans that meet the national requirements, and anything on the council’s up-to-date local validation list that is reasonable for the proposal. For many sites it is worth seeking pre-application advice first, so you understand what the council expects at outline stage and which matters it may insist on seeing early.

Timescales: reserved matters and starting on site

Under section 92 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, outline permissions in England are normally subject to conditions that:

• require an application for approval of each reserved matter within three years of the date outline permission was granted; and
• require the development to be begun within two years of the final approval of the reserved matters (or of the last reserved matter if they are approved on different dates).

If those conditions are missing from the decision notice, the permission is generally treated as if they had been imposed. The council can substitute different periods when it grants outline permission, so always read the decision carefully. Once the time limit for reserved matters has expired, you cannot submit further reserved matters applications under that outline permission.

You can apply for all reserved matters together or individually. Even after a reserved matter has been approved, you can usually apply again for alternative details of the same matter, provided you are still within the time limit.

Statutory decision periods for planning applications (including reserved matters) are normally eight weeks for non-major development and 13 weeks for major development, or longer where an Environmental Impact Assessment applies or where you agree an extension with the council.

When outline planning permission makes sense

Outline is often the better first step where:

• you need to establish the principle of residential, commercial or mixed use before buying the site or committing to full design fees;
• lenders or investors want planning certainty before funding detailed design;
• the layout and appearance are still flexible and you want room to refine them later; or
• the project is large enough that a staged approach reduces risk.

Outline is usually less helpful for a simple householder extension, where a full or householder application is quicker and clearer. It is also less suitable where the design is already fixed and the only question is whether that exact scheme will be approved — in that case a full planning application is the direct route.

Outline vs full planning: a quick comparison

• Outline — decides principle now; detailed design later via reserved matters; typical for larger or speculative schemes.
• Full — decides the detailed scheme in one application; no reserved matters stage; typical for householder and many smaller commercial projects.

Neither route removes the need for other consents. Building regulations approval, listed building consent, party wall procedures and highway agreements can still apply depending on the works.

Outline planning FAQs

Can I start building with outline permission alone?

No. You need approval of the reserved matters (and compliance with any other conditions) before the detailed scheme is authorised. Development must then start within the time limit on the permission.

Do I have to reserve all five matters?

No. You can reserve some and submit others with the outline application. If you submit details without saying they are illustrative only, the council will treat them as part of the application.

How long do I have to submit reserved matters?

Normally three years from the date of the outline permission in England, unless the decision notice sets a different period. Check the conditions on your decision notice.

Is outline cheaper than full permission?

Not necessarily. The planning fee and supporting work still depend on the scale of development, and you will pay again for reserved matters. The main saving is often in deferring full design costs until the principle is agreed.

Get help with an outline planning application

If you are considering outline planning permission for a site in London or elsewhere in the UK, a planning consultant can advise whether outline or full is the better route, prepare the application and handle reserved matters afterwards. Get your planning consultant quote in under 60 seconds and we will put you in touch with an experienced consultant.