Apply for development consent for a major infrastructure project

A development consent order is the single consent for a nationally significant infrastructure project in England, and for some projects in Wales. It replaces planning permission and can also authorise compulsory purchase of land and other consents the project needs. The Planning Inspectorate handles the application and examination for the Secretary of State, and the Secretary of State for the relevant department makes the decision. Starting the development without consent is an offence.

Check whether your project needs development consent

Part 3 of the Planning Act 2008 sets a threshold for each type of project. Among them:

• an onshore generating station in England of more than 50 megawatts, or more than 100 megawatts if it generates from wind or directly from sunlight
• an offshore generating station of more than 100 megawatts
• an overhead electric line of 132 kilovolts or more, unless it is shorter than 2 kilometres or another exception applies
• a reservoir in England built by a water undertaker holding more than 30 million cubic metres, or with a deployable output of more than 80 million litres a day
• a waste water treatment plant in England with a capacity of more than 500,000 population equivalent, or waste water storage of more than 350,000 cubic metres
• a hazardous waste facility in England handling more than 100,000 tonnes a year by landfill or deep storage, or more than 30,000 tonnes a year otherwise

Highways, airports, harbour facilities, railways and rail freight interchanges have their own thresholds in sections 22 to 26 of the Act. Most of the thresholds apply to England only, so check the section for your project type.

Ask for a direction if your project falls below a threshold

Under section 35 of the Act, the Secretary of State can direct that a project is treated as needing development consent even if it does not meet a threshold. Energy, transport, water, waste water and waste projects can qualify, as well as the business and commercial projects below.

Prepare and notify before you apply

Use the pre-application period to agree a programme with the Planning Inspectorate, decide whether you need an environmental impact assessment, and complete surveys that can only be done in certain seasons.

Submit the application

The Secretary of State must decide within 28 days of receiving your application whether to accept it for examination. The application can only be accepted if it is an application for development consent, consent is needed for the development, you complied with the duty to notify, and the application and its documents are of a satisfactory standard. If it is not accepted you get a statement of reasons and can modify and resubmit it. You pay a fee for the acceptance decision with the application, and further fees for the examination after the preliminary meeting.

Once it is accepted, you must notify the people and bodies listed in the Act, including owners, tenants and occupiers of the land, and tell them the deadline for registering an interest, which must be at least 28 days after they receive your notice.

Take part in the examination

The Examining authority must finish the examination within 6 months of the preliminary meeting. It then has 3 months to report to the Secretary of State, who has a further 3 months to decide. The Secretary of State can extend these deadlines, but must announce any extension to Parliament.

After the decision

The Secretary of State must have regard to any national policy statement for your type of development, as well as local impact reports and other relevant matters. The decision can grant the order, with or without changes, or refuse it.

Anyone wanting to challenge the decision must file a claim for judicial review within 6 weeks, starting the day after the order or the statement of reasons is published. If the order is granted, build and operate the project within its requirements, because a breach can lead to enforcement action.