Signage and planning permission, in that order

Aug 29
3 min read

Updated: 2 days ago

Introduction

A business fits an illuminated sign across the front of its premises. It looks good, it is visible from the road, and trade improves. Four months later a letter arrives requiring its removal because no consent was obtained.

The sign cost a substantial sum, the removal costs more, and a retrospective application may or may not succeed. Signage sits in an odd position: it is one of the most valuable pieces of marketing a physical business has, and it is subject to controls that most owners do not know exist until they have already spent the money. The order of those two events is the entire problem. For a business on a passing route it can be the single largest source of new customers.

1. Signage and planning permission need checking before the sign is made

The sequence that saves the money.

Consent requirements vary by location, by the type of sign and by the building. Establishing the position first costs a telephone call; establishing it afterwards can cost the sign.

2. Find out what needs consent where you are

Rules differ considerably.

Size, illumination, projection from the building, whether it moves, and the character of the area all affect whether permission is required. Many jurisdictions permit modest non-illuminated signs without consent and control everything else. Illumination in particular is where consent is most often required.

3. Check whether the building has additional protections

The most common trap.

Listed and historic buildings, conservation areas and similar designations impose much stricter controls, sometimes prohibiting illumination entirely. These apply regardless of what neighbouring premises appear to have done.

4. Read your lease as well

A separate permission.

Most leases require the landlord's consent for signage and may specify size, position and materials. Planning consent does not override a lease restriction, and both are needed. Obtaining one and not the other leaves you exposed to whichever you skipped.

5. Look at what neighbours have done, cautiously

Indicative, not authoritative.

Existing signs may predate current rules, may have consent, or may simply not have been challenged yet. Using them as evidence of what is permitted is a common and unreliable approach. Enforcement is generally complaint-driven, which means an unchallenged sign proves nothing.

6. Apply properly if consent is needed

Usually straightforward.

Applications for advertisement consent are generally simpler and cheaper than full planning applications, with a defined determination period. Building the timescale into your fit-out schedule avoids a delay at the end.

7. Consider what the sign actually needs to do

A marketing question as well as a regulatory one.

Legibility at the speed and distance people approach, the name and what you do, and visibility after dark. A sign that meets every rule and cannot be read from the road has satisfied nobody.

8. Think about the other visibility options

Where signage is constrained.

Vehicle livery, A-boards where permitted, window graphics, directional signage, and making sure your map listing is accurate. These matter more when the building itself cannot carry a large sign.

9. Maintain it

An overlooked obligation.

Signs are generally required to be kept in a safe and tidy condition, and a faded or damaged sign signals a business that is not paying attention. Illumination that half works is worse than none.

Budget the consent process into the move. Businesses plan fit-out and opening dates and then discover that signage requires a determination period of several weeks, which means opening without being identifiable from the road.

Conclusion

Check the position before commissioning the sign, because retrospective consent is harder and sometimes refused.

Find out what requires consent in your area based on size, illumination and projection, check whether the building carries additional historic or conservation protections, obtain the landlord's consent under the lease as a separate requirement, treat neighbouring signs as indicative rather than authoritative, apply properly and build the determination period into your schedule, design the sign to be legible at the distance people approach, use vehicles, windows and map listings where signage is constrained, and keep it maintained.