Planning Feasibility Appraisal
Unsure Whether You Need Planning Permission?
Before you spend money on detailed drawings, structural calculations or a full planning application, our Planning Feasibility Appraisal helps establish whether your project is realistically achievable.
For just £250 + VAT, our planning team will assess your property, identify potential planning risks and recommend the best route forward.
The Difference
Know Before You Commit
A Planning Feasibility Appraisal is the first step we recommend for customers who are unsure whether their proposed oak framed building will require planning permission or receive approval. Rather than paying for detailed drawings and discovering planning issues later, the appraisal allows us to review the site, identify potential restrictions and advise on the strongest route forward.
Without an appraisal
- Drawings commissioned too early
- Planning restrictions discovered later
- Building may need redesigning
- Additional costs and delays
- Greater risk of refusal
With an appraisal
- Planning risks identified early
- Correct route established
- Design guided by planning requirements
- Reduced risk of wasted costs
- Greater confidence before proceeding
Our Review
What We Review
Property location and site context
Planning history
Local planning policies
Permitted Development rights
Green Belt restrictions
Conservation Areas
National Landscapes and protected areas
Listed buildings and heritage concerns
Position within the property
Distance from boundaries
Ridge and eaves height
Building size and footprint
Roof design and pitch
Visual impact
Highway and access considerations
Relationship with neighbouring properties
Any obvious planning risks
The appraisal is an early-stage planning assessment and does not guarantee planning approval. It does give you a much clearer picture of the likely planning position before you invest further.
Next Steps
What Happens After the Appraisal?
Permitted Development May Apply
Your proposed building may fall within Permitted Development rights, meaning a full planning application may not be required.
We may recommend obtaining a Lawful Development Certificate for formal confirmation.
Full Planning Permission Recommended
The project appears achievable, but a formal planning application is likely to be required.
We will explain the next steps and can manage the planning process on your behalf.
Design Changes Recommended
We may recommend changes to improve the likelihood of approval. These could include:
Reducing the ridge height · Moving the building further from a boundary · Changing the roof pitch · Reducing the footprint · Relocating the building · Adjusting the overall appearance
Planning, made clear
Planning permission for oak buildings, explained
How we approach planning, how we build, and why Southern Oak is the safe choice.
What planning services do Southern Oak offer?
Our in-house team manages the lot: permitted development checks, full planning applications, building regulations and listed-building and conservation-area consents. Our £250 + VAT Planning Feasibility Appraisal assesses the planning risk on your project up front and is credited against a full planning application if you proceed through Southern Oak.
How are Southern Oak's buildings constructed?
We cut each frame from selected green oak using traditional mortise and tenon joints, pegged and drawbored for strength, then finish and assemble on your site onto a brick or stone plinth with a concrete pad. Roofs are clad in cedar shingles, clay or slate, or integrated solar panels. Every building is designed for a 100+ year life and matures to a soft silver-grey as the oak seasons.
Why choose Southern Oak?
You get one team from first sketch to final handover: design, planning, hand-cut manufacture and on-site installation. Transparent staged payments, nationwide coverage and a frame built to outlast generations mean your investment is protected at every step.
Why It Matters
Why Start With Planning Feasibility?
Most customers want to start with drawings. But planning should guide the design from the very beginning. Commission detailed drawings before you understand the planning position and you risk expensive redesigns, delays and needless application costs. The Planning Feasibility Appraisal protects your investment by catching the issues at the earliest stage.
Planning a project beyond an oak building?
Explore our wider planning services for extensions, conversions, new homes, change of use, development land and commercial property.
Low Risk
How the Appraisal Fee Works
The Planning Feasibility Appraisal costs £250 + VAT. Once Southern Oak has been instructed and work on the appraisal has begun, the fee is non-refundable. If you proceed with a full planning application through Southern Oak, the £250 + VAT appraisal fee is credited against the full planning application fee.
Purchase appraisal
→Receive planning guidance
→Proceed with Southern Oak
→£250 + VAT credited toward planning
The credit applies when you proceed with a full planning application through Southern Oak. The credit cannot be exchanged for cash and the fee is non-refundable once work on the appraisal has begun.
Quick Check
Could Your Project Need Planning Permission?
Is the building positioned forward of the main house?
This checker provides general guidance only and does not constitute formal planning advice.
Purchase
Start Your Planning Feasibility Appraisal
Complete the details below. You'll be taken to our secure checkout to pay £300 including VAT.
Your details
Your project
Documents
Upload photographs, sketches, site plans or existing drawings (multiple files welcome).
Non-refundable fee
The Planning Feasibility Appraisal fee of £250 + VAT (£300 including VAT) is non-refundable once Southern Oak has been instructed and work on your appraisal has commenced. By proceeding to payment you acknowledge and accept that the fee will not be refunded after instruction.
If you proceed with a full planning application through Southern Oak, the £250 + VAT fee will be credited against the full planning application fee.
£300.00
including VAT (£250 + £50 VAT)
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