Journey · Starting a Business
Planning compliance quick check
Quick check: Do you need planning permission for your development? Answer a few questions to find out whether you need to apply, or whether permitted development rights apply.
Do you need planning permission?
Not all development needs planning permission. Some changes are "permitted development" - allowed without applying. Use this quick check to find out your situation.
Question 1: What are you doing?
Building something new
- New building → Usually needs permission (exceptions below)
- Extension to existing building → May be permitted development
- Outbuilding in garden → May be permitted development
Changing how something is used
- House to flats → Needs permission
- Office to residential → May be permitted (Class MA)
- Shop to café → Often permitted (both Class E)
- Agricultural building to house → May be permitted (Class Q)
Changing the appearance
- New windows/doors → Usually permitted (unless listed/conservation area)
- Cladding or render → Usually permitted (unless listed/conservation area)
- Satellite dishes → Usually permitted
Question 2: Are there restrictions on your property?
Check for these - they can remove permitted development rights:
- ☐ Listed building → Almost always needs consent
- ☐ Conservation area → Many PD rights removed
- ☐ Article 4 direction → Specific PD rights removed by council
- ☐ National Park / AONB → Some PD rights reduced
- ☐ Previous planning condition → May restrict changes
If any apply: Check with your local planning authority before assuming you don't need permission.
Quick answers for common scenarios
✓ Usually permitted development (no application needed)
- Single-storey rear extension within limits
- Loft conversion (within volume limits, no highways-facing dormer)
- Garden building under 15sqm
- Office (Class E) to residential (Class MA) - prior approval
- Shop to restaurant (both Class E)
- Solar panels on roof
✗ Usually needs planning permission
- New dwelling (unless prior approval applies)
- Building in front of your house
- Extension that's too large
- Flat conversions
- Change from residential to commercial
- Anything in a listed building
Not sure? Apply for a Certificate of Lawful Development (CLEUD for existing, CLOPUD for proposed). This confirms whether your proposal is permitted development. It's cheaper than a full application and gives legal certainty.
What to do next
If permitted development applies
- Some PD requires "prior approval" - a light-touch application
- Consider getting a CLOPUD for legal certainty
- Check building regulations still apply (separate from planning)
If you need planning permission
Useful resources
- Planning Portal Interactive House: Visual guide to permitted development for householders
- Your local planning authority: Pre-application advice service
- Use Classes Order: Defines what uses need planning permission to change
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Immediate steps when unsafe food is discovered or a customer reports illness. Stop selling, withdraw the product, notify the FSA, and cooperate with enforcement.
View journey →Start a food business for the first time
Everything you need to do before opening a food business. Covers registration, premises, HACCP, training, allergens, labelling, and preparing for your first inspection.
View journey →Food safety quick compliance check
A quick compliance check for food business operators. Covers registration, HACCP, allergens, temperature control, training, and record keeping.
View journey →Improve your food hygiene rating
Practical steps to improve a poor food hygiene rating. Understand what inspectors scored, fix the issues, and request a re-inspection.
View journey →Self Assessment for landlords
A learning path for landlords who need to report rental income through Self Assessment. Covers registration, reporting property income on SA105, allowable expenses, mortgage interest restriction, and Making Tax Digital.
View journey →Employing people in Northern Ireland
Complete guide to NI employment law including fair employment monitoring, equality obligations, and how NI legislation differs from Great Britain. Covers the key areas where Northern Ireland has its own rules.
View journey →Starting a business in Northern Ireland
Complete guide to NI-specific requirements when starting a business. Covers devolved differences in employment law, business rates, planning, health and safety, and available support programmes.
View journey →Fix problems moving goods from GB to Northern Ireland
Troubleshooting UKIMS, customs declarations, NIRMS labelling, product marking, and EORI issues when moving goods from Great Britain to Northern Ireland under the Windsor Framework.
View journey →Windsor Framework: quick compliance check for GB businesses
Quick check for GB businesses selling goods to Northern Ireland. Covers UKIMS authorisation, NIRMS for food, EORI numbers, customs requirements, and product labelling.
View journey →Selling goods from Great Britain to Northern Ireland
Complete compliance guide for GB businesses selling goods into Northern Ireland. Covers the Windsor Framework, UKIMS registration, customs requirements, product standards, and VAT implications.
View journey →Fair employment monitoring compliance problems
Troubleshooting fair employment monitoring and ECNI compliance for Northern Ireland employers. Covers registration failures, missed monitoring returns, triennial review problems, and responding to ECNI investigations.
View journey →Quick check: Northern Ireland-specific requirements
Quick checklist of key Northern Ireland differences from Great Britain. Check employment law, health and safety, planning, business rates, and equality obligations that apply only in NI.
View journey →Respond to a Trading Standards investigation
What to do if Trading Standards has contacted you, visited your premises, or conducted a test purchase. Covers understanding their powers, identifying the compliance area under investigation, gathering your due diligence evidence, responding appropriately, and strengthening your procedures.
View journey →Start selling online - retail compliance
A learning path for retailers adding an online sales channel. Covers the additional compliance obligations for distance selling, including cooling-off periods, website legal requirements, online data protection, accessibility, subscription rules, and handling complaints from online customers.
View journey →Retail compliance quick check
Quick compliance check for experienced retailers. Covers consumer rights, price marking, age-restricted sales, and annual compliance obligations.
View journey →Start a retail business - compliance essentials
A comprehensive compliance onboarding journey for new retailers. Covers consumer rights, pricing law, age-restricted sales, product safety, data protection, accessibility duties, and specialist licences. Designed for first-time retail business owners who need to understand their legal obligations before opening.
View journey →Do I need an environmental permit?
Quick assessment of whether your business activities require an environmental permit from the Environment Agency or local council.
View journey →Prepare your BNPL business for FCA regulation
Preparation guide for Buy Now Pay Later providers and merchants ahead of FCA regulation from 15 July 2026. Covers what is changing, whether you need FCA authorisation or credit broking permission, affordability assessment setup, advertising compliance, pre-contract disclosure, and complaints handling through the Financial Ombudsman Service.
View journey →Respond to FCA enforcement action or investigation
What to do if the FCA contacts your consumer credit firm about enforcement action, a skilled person review, or formal investigation. Covers identifying the type of action, immediate steps, compliance review, and preparing your response.
View journey →Start offering consumer credit to customers
End-to-end learning path for businesses new to consumer credit. Covers understanding FCA regulation, obtaining authorisation, setting up pre-contract disclosures and affordability assessments, complying with advertising rules, and verifying ongoing compliance under the Consumer Duty.
View journey →Handle Section 75 claims from customers
What to do when a customer makes a Section 75 connected lender liability claim. Covers validating the claim against the GBP 100 to GBP 30,000 threshold, investigating supplier breach or misrepresentation, responding within the 8-week complaints deadline, FOS escalation, and recovering costs from the supplier.
View journey →Consumer credit compliance quick-check
Quick compliance check for experienced consumer credit firms. Covers FCA permissions, fee payments, credit advertising, pre-contract disclosures, Consumer Duty obligations, complaints handling, and upcoming BNPL regulation.
View journey →Accommodation compliance for hotels, B&Bs, and holiday lets
Compliance journey for accommodation providers covering tourist registration, fire safety for sleeping accommodation, legionella management, VAT on accommodation, short-term lets regulation, HMO licensing, and data protection for guest data.
View journey →Start a hospitality business: licences, food safety, and compliance
End-to-end learning path for opening a hospitality business. Covers premises licences, food business registration, HACCP, fire safety, employer obligations, tipping law, and music licensing. Signposts to specialist guides for accommodation, events, and gaming.
View journey →Healthcare compliance quick check
Quick compliance check for experienced healthcare providers. Covers CQC registration, professional registrations, DBS checks, medicines audit, controlled drugs register, IPC audit, fire risk assessment, DSPT submission, insurance, and policy reviews.
View journey →Respond to a medicines or controlled drugs incident
What to do when a medicines incident occurs: medication error, controlled drug discrepancy, or CD theft/loss. Covers securing the patient and evidence, internal reporting, statutory notifications to CQC, MHRA Yellow Card, police notification for CD theft, investigation, Accountable Officer responsibilities, and corrective actions.
View journey →Open new hospitality premises: from lease to launch
End-to-end journey from signing a lease to opening night. Covers planning use class checks, premises licence application timeline, building regulations and fire safety, commercial kitchen fit-out, food business registration, music licensing, pavement licensing, and staff recruitment with right to work checks.
View journey →Respond to a CQC investigation or enforcement action
What to do if your healthcare or social care service faces CQC enforcement action. Covers understanding the type and severity of action, immediate response steps, getting legal representation, developing an improvement plan, and the appeal process through the First-tier Tribunal.
View journey →Respond to a hospitality licensing investigation
What to do if your hospitality business faces a licensing review, environmental health investigation, fire safety enforcement notice, or HMRC compliance check. Covers identifying the investigation type, understanding your rights, gathering evidence, getting representation, and preventing recurrence.
View journey →Hospitality compliance quick check
Quick compliance check for experienced hospitality operators. Covers licensing, food safety, fire risk, tipping policy, right to work, gas safety, music licensing, and insurance.
View journey →Prepare for the Data Use and Access Act 2025 changes
A step-by-step guide to understanding and adapting to the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025. Covers the 8 key reforms now in force, including recognised legitimate interests, SRI replacing DPO, cookie consent changes, and the 35x increase in PECR penalties.
View journey →Consumer rights compliance checklist
Quick compliance check for traders selling goods, services, or digital content to consumers. Covers quality standards, remedies, distance selling, unfair terms, and enforcement readiness.
View journey →Start selling products on the UK market
A comprehensive introduction to UK product safety compliance for businesses placing products on the GB market. Covers the legal framework (CPA 1987, GPSR 2005, PRMA 2025), supply chain responsibilities, risk assessment, UKCA and CE marking, online marketplace duties, and a compliance checklist. Designed for importers, new manufacturers, and online marketplace sellers with no prior knowledge of product safety law.
View journey →Planning permission for new development
A complete guide to getting planning permission for your first development project, from understanding when you need permission to navigating conditions and obligations.
View journey →Product safety quick compliance check
Rapid product safety self-assessment: verify safety obligations, marking, documentation, traceability, and recall readiness for products on the UK market.
View journey →Respond to a product safety incident
Emergency guidance when you discover an unsafe product. Stop supply immediately, notify Trading Standards and OPSS, manage the recall, and understand your legal exposure under the Consumer Protection Act 1987.
View journey →Comply with the Online Safety Act from scratch
A complete learning path for platform operators new to the Online Safety Act 2023. Covers understanding the Act, determining scope and platform category, conducting risk assessments, protecting children, implementing content moderation, writing compliant terms of service, setting up complaints procedures, implementing age assurance, and registering with Ofcom.
View journey →Help with Wales Visitor Levy
Troubleshooting guide for Wales visitor accommodation registration and levy collection. Helps accommodation providers understand registration requirements, council levy adoption, and how to collect and remit the levy.
View journey →Product compliance checklist for GB market
Quick checklist to verify your products meet GB market requirements for conformity marking, safety assessment, documentation, and traceability before placing goods on the market.
View journey →Responding to a product safety issue
What to do when you discover a product safety problem -- from initial assessment through recall notification and corrective action.
View journey →Start using AI responsibly in your business
End-to-end learning path for businesses adopting AI: understanding the regulatory landscape, assessing obligations, setting up governance, managing specific risks around data, bias, and transparency, and maintaining ongoing compliance.
View journey →AI compliance quick check
Rapid AI compliance self-assessment: identify AI systems, map to regulators, flag critical obligations, confirm key safeguards in place.
View journey →Handling customer refund disputes
When a customer demands a refund, what are your legal obligations? This guide helps you determine whether the customer is entitled to a refund, what remedy to offer, and how to process it correctly under the Consumer Rights Act 2015.
View journey →UK REACH registration deadline approaching
Steps to take as your UK REACH registration deadline approaches -- from checking your obligations to preparing your registration dossier.
View journey →Chemicals compliance in the UK
Complete guide to UK REACH and GB CLP compliance for businesses that manufacture, import, or use chemical substances and mixtures.
View journey →Prepare for EU AI Act compliance
A focused preparation path for UK businesses affected by the EU AI Act. Understand the four risk tiers, check which deadlines have already passed, classify your AI systems, and prepare for high-risk obligations before the August 2026 deadline.
View journey →Using AI in recruitment safely
Compliance path for employers using AI in recruitment: legal risks, DPIA, equality impact assessment, GOV.UK guidance, bias testing, candidate transparency, record-keeping.
View journey →Online Safety Act compliance quick check
Rapid compliance self-assessment for experienced operators: confirm scope, verify risk assessments, check content moderation, terms of service, complaints, age assurance, and Ofcom registration status.
View journey →Understanding consumer rights law for traders
Learn your legal obligations when selling goods, services, or digital content to consumers. Covers the Consumer Rights Act 2015 quality standards, tiered remedies, distance selling rules, unfair contract terms, and enforcement penalties.
View journey →Respond to an Ofcom investigation
What to do when Ofcom takes enforcement action against your online service under the Online Safety Act 2023. Covers identifying the type of action, evidence preservation, senior manager criminal liability, responding to notices, penalty mitigation, and seeking legal advice.
View journey →Responding to an AI regulatory investigation
What to do when a UK regulator investigates your AI system: ICO enforcement, FCA investigation, EHRC inquiry, CMA review. Covers immediate steps, your rights, evidence preservation, cooperation obligations, and potential penalties.
View journey →SuDS approval in Wales: quick guide
Quick checklist for mandatory Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) approval in Wales. Check if you need approval, how to apply to your local SAB, and understand penalties for non-compliance.
View journey →Start selling online legally
Everything you need to know before launching an online shop. Covers distance selling regulations, pre-contract information, cancellation rights, refund obligations, website compliance, consumer rights for goods and digital content, and enforcement.
View journey →UK REACH compliance checklist
Quick check of your UK REACH registration and notification status. Covers manufacturer and importer registration, downstream user obligations, SVHC duties, Safety Data Sheets, and approaching tonnage band deadlines.
View journey →Quick check: Wales-specific requirements
Quick checklist of key Wales-specific differences from England. Check business rates, planning, Welsh language, environmental permits, workplace recycling, and Land Transaction Tax.
View journey →Responding to planning enforcement
What to do if you receive a planning enforcement notice. Understand the type of notice you have received, review your options, and find out how to appeal or comply.
View journey →Responding to a CMA investigation
What to do if the Competition and Markets Authority or Trading Standards is investigating your business. Covers immediate steps, cooperation obligations, deadlines, undertakings, and possible outcomes including fines under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024.
View journey →PSTI IoT compliance check
Quick compliance check for IoT manufacturers, importers, and distributors. Confirm product scope, verify three mandatory security requirements, identify your supply chain role, and confirm your statement of compliance obligations.
View journey →Health and safety for a growing business
What changes as your business grows: written policy at 5 employees, safety representatives at 50, and formal management systems at 250+. Understand the thresholds that trigger new health and safety obligations.
View journey →Prepare for an HSE visit
What to expect from an HSE inspection. Covers types of visit, inspector powers, what they check, improvement and prohibition notices, Fee for Intervention, how to challenge, and what to do during the visit.
View journey →Respond to a workplace accident
Immediate steps after a workplace accident. Covers first aid, scene preservation, RIDDOR reporting, investigation, record keeping, and insurance notification.
View journey →Responding to an MHSWR improvement notice
What to do when you receive an improvement notice citing MHSWR 1999 breaches. Understand the notice, identify the breach, fix the problem, and know your appeal rights.
View journey →Higher-risk building registration checklist
Quick registration checklist for Principal Accountable Persons registering a higher-risk building with the Building Safety Regulator. Covers eligibility, required information, fees, and post-registration obligations.
View journey →Employee pregnancy notification received
What to do when an employee notifies you of pregnancy. Time-sensitive compliance actions under MHSWR 1999 Regulations 16-18 covering risk assessment, action hierarchy, and ongoing monitoring.
View journey →MHSWR 1999 quick compliance audit
Rapid compliance check covering all key MHSWR 1999 duties. Verify your risk assessment, competent person, emergency procedures, information, training, and vulnerable worker protections in 10 minutes.
View journey →Golden thread compliance check
Quick compliance check for duty holders to verify their golden thread meets Building Safety Act requirements. Covers format, content, access controls, and phase-specific obligations for design, construction, and occupation.
View journey →Welsh language compliance help
Help with Welsh language requirements for businesses contracting with the public sector in Wales. Covers when Standards apply, what you need to do, how to build capability, and what happens if you fail to comply.
View journey →Dealing with a business insurance claim
Step-by-step guide for businesses making an insurance claim: immediate actions after a loss, notifying your insurer, gathering evidence, and what to do if your claim is disputed.
View journey →Pre-trading approvals quick check
Quick check for experienced business owners verifying they have all required registrations, licences, and approvals before starting to trade.
View journey →Trading without required approvals: what to do now
If you have been caught trading without required approvals — or have realised you are missing registrations or licences — this guide helps you understand the severity, get compliant quickly, and prevent recurrence.
View journey →Your business plan was rejected: what to do next
What to do when a lender, investor, or grant body rejects your business plan
View journey →Validate your business idea before you invest
Research, test, and validate your business idea before committing significant time or money
View journey →Understanding business rates
How business rates work, what relief you can claim, and how to challenge your rateable value. Covers calculation, relief schemes, appeals, and revaluation across all UK nations.
View journey →Getting approved to trade: complete pre-trading journey
A comprehensive learning journey for first-time business owners: understand what approvals you need, complete mandatory registrations, check for activity-specific licences, navigate local authority requirements, and plan your timeline to trading day.
View journey →Choose the right business model
Decide between product, service, and subscription models based on your skills, capital, and goals
View journey →Insuring your new business
A step-by-step learning journey for new business owners: understand which insurance is legally required, what additional cover you need, how to compare and buy policies, and how to manage renewals.
View journey →Name your business: check, register, and protect
Quick guide to checking name availability, understanding naming rules, and protecting your brand
View journey →Annual insurance review checklist
Quick checklist for annual insurance review: verify cover matches your business, compare renewal quotes, meet disclosure obligations, and set your next review date.
View journey →Plan your business from idea to launch
A step-by-step planning journey from idea validation through business plan writing to launch preparation
View journey →Starting a social care provider business
Step-by-step guide to starting a social care business — from choosing your regulator through workforce requirements to financial planning.
View journey →Getting started with international road haulage
Upgrade your domestic haulage operation for international road freight
View journey →Growing your goods vehicle fleet
What changes when you grow your goods vehicle fleet, from O-licence variations to OCRS scrutiny
View journey →What to do when stopped by DVSA at the roadside
How to handle a DVSA roadside inspection, what examiners check, your rights during the stop, prohibition powers, and what to do afterwards to address any issues raised.
View journey →Goods vehicle compliance quick check
Quick compliance check across all goods vehicle operator obligations
View journey →Running a holiday let
Step-by-step compliance guide for self-catering holiday accommodation. Covers licensing, safety, tax, food hygiene, and employment obligations.
View journey →Responding to DVSA enforcement or Traffic Commissioner action
What to do if your transport business faces DVSA enforcement action or a Traffic Commissioner public inquiry. Covers understanding your OCRS score, preparing for a public inquiry, fixing vehicle maintenance and drivers' hours gaps, and demonstrating compliance improvement.
View journey →