Most homeowners don’t need a planning consultant for a routine rear extension or loft conversion, an architect or architectural technologist experienced in local applications can handle those. But for complex, contentious, or refused applications, a specialist planning consultant can make the difference between a yes and a no.

This guide explains what planning consultants do, when they earn their fee, and what you should expect to pay.

What Is a Planning Consultant?

A planning consultant is a specialist in the UK’s planning system, not to be confused with an architect. While an architect designs buildings, a planning consultant understands how local planning policy, national planning frameworks, and officer decision-making intersect. Many are members of the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) and hold the Chartered Town Planner (MRTPI or FRTPI) designation.1

Their work typically includes:

  • Advising whether your project needs planning permission or falls within permitted development rights2
  • Preparing and managing pre-application advice submissions to the local planning authority (LPA)
  • Writing planning statements and design-and-access statements to support applications
  • Liaising with planning officers during the determination period
  • Managing planning appeals to the Planning Inspectorate (written representations, hearings, or public inquiries)3
  • Advising on conditions attached to grants of permission and how to discharge them

When a Planning Consultant Is Worth Hiring

Complex or Sensitive Sites

If your property sits within a conservation area, is a listed building, falls in a Green Belt, flood zone, or other designated land, the planning process is more involved. Officers must consider heritage and landscape policy as well as standard design guidance. A planning consultant who knows the relevant national and local policies, and who has dealt with your LPA before, significantly improves your chances.

Refused Applications

If your application has been refused, a planning consultant can assess whether the reasons given are sound, whether negotiation with the LPA might resolve them, or whether an appeal is warranted. About three in ten planning appeals succeed: the Planning Inspectorate reported an allowed rate of 31% for section 78 planning appeals between April and June 2026.4 A well-prepared case gives you the best chance, which is where a consultant earns their fee.

Pre-Application Engagement

Each LPA sets its own charge for pre-application advice, and government guidance says the charge must not exceed the cost of providing the service.5 Householder requests commonly cost from under £100 to a few hundred pounds, with larger schemes costing more. A planning consultant can prepare the supporting material that makes this process productive, not just a summary of what you want to build, but a case for why it’s acceptable in planning terms.

Lawful Development Certificates

Obtaining a Certificate of Lawful Development (CLD) means showing the council that an existing use or development is lawful, or that a proposed project would be lawful, for example because it falls within permitted development.67 A planning consultant can assemble the legal and factual evidence to make that case robustly.

Larger Residential Schemes

If you’re subdividing a property, building new dwellings, or pursuing a more significant development, a planning consultant becomes near-essential. These applications involve far more policy layers, neighbour impact assessment, and officer negotiation than a standard extension.

Typical Planning Consultant Fees in 2026

Fees vary widely by project type, location, and whether the consultant is a sole practitioner or a larger firm.

ServiceTypical Fee Range
Initial planning advice / feasibility review£300 – £1,500
Pre-application submission (preparation)£1,200 – £3,000
Householder planning application management£1,500 – £4,000
Full planning application (larger scheme)£3,500 – £10,000+
Planning appeal (written representations)£3,000 – £8,000
Planning appeal (hearing or inquiry)£8,000 – £25,000+
Lawful development certificate advice£800 – £2,500

London and South East rates are usually higher than elsewhere in England. Welsh, Scottish, and Northern Irish planning systems have distinct rules; check that your consultant has relevant devolved-system experience if you’re outside England.

Note that planning consultant fees are separate from LPA application fees, which are set by government: from 1 April 2026 a householder application to extend or alter a house in England costs £548, and larger schemes cost significantly more.8

Planning Consultant vs Architect: Who Does What?

This is a common point of confusion. The roles overlap but are distinct.

An architect designs the building, prepares drawings, and usually handles planning applications for straightforward residential extensions and alterations. For anything more complex, they may bring in a planning consultant to write the planning statement or manage policy-related correspondence.

A planning consultant does not design buildings. They interpret policy, prepare written arguments, and manage the planning process. For any scheme that needs drawings, which most do, you’ll still need an architect or architectural technologist alongside your planning consultant.

For contentious householder applications or appeals, the best approach is usually an architect plus a planning consultant working together.

How to Vet a Planning Consultant

Look for MRTPI or FRTPI membership, this is the main quality marker in the profession. The RTPI’s Directory of Planning Consultants lists only Chartered Members or Legal Associates of the Institute, so it is a sensible place to start.9

Ask specifically about their track record with your LPA. Someone who regularly works in Ealing will know the conservation officer’s preferences and the committee’s tendencies better than a generalist who has never submitted there.

Clarify what’s included in the fee. Some consultants quote for preparation and submission only; others include officer liaison, revision rounds, and post-decision advice. Get scope in writing before engagement.

Beware of guaranteed outcome promises. Planning decisions ultimately rest with the LPA or the Planning Inspectorate. Any consultant who guarantees approval should be treated with caution.

When You Probably Don’t Need One

  • A standard rear extension or loft conversion in a non-designated area, handled by an architect experienced with your LPA
  • A straightforward outbuilding within permitted development limits where the question is simple and clear2
  • An application where pre-application advice from the LPA has already confirmed acceptability

In these cases, a competent architect or architectural technologist is sufficient. Save the planning consultant budget for situations where the policy case is genuinely complex, where there’s been a refusal, or where the financial stakes of getting it wrong are high.

The Bottom Line

Planning consultants are a specialist tool. For a routine project, they’re an unnecessary expense. For a difficult site, a refusal, or a significant residential scheme, their fee is often the best money you’ll spend on the project, the cost of a refused appeal or a planning condition that limits what you can do with your property far outweighs a consultant’s retainer.

If you’re unsure whether you need one, a paid one-hour feasibility review (typically £300–£600) with an MRTPI consultant will give you an honest answer.

References (9)

Figures in this note were checked against the sources below on 30 September 2026. Superscript numbers in the text point to them. Every source the site cites, by topic.

  1. 1technicalstrongRoyal Town Planning Institute, guidance.RN-E4E60DThe RTPI's membership page for Chartered Planners: chartered members are fully qualified, bound by the RTPI Code of Conduct and use the post-nominal MRTPI.
  2. 2technicalvery strongThe National Archives, legislation.RN-OWGIY3Schedule 2 Part 1 of the GPDO 2015, development within the curtilage of a dwellinghouse. This is permitted development itself: Class A enlargement and alteration, with the limits and conditions, through the classes covering roof alterations, porches, outbuildings and hard surfaces. Every statement about what can be built without planning permission traces to this Part, and the exclusions at the start of each class are where most projects actually fall out.
  3. 3technicalvery strongMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (GOV.UK), guidance.RN-U3H36MSets the appeal deadlines: 12 weeks from the date on the decision notice for householder and minor commercial appeals and 6 months for other planning appeals (paragraph 013, revised 2 April 2026), 8 weeks for advertisement consent (paragraph 016) and 28 days from the date of issue for enforcement notice appeals (paragraph 018). Describes the four procedures (Part 1 and Part 2 written representations, hearings and inquiries) with Planning Inspectorate targets of 98 per cent decided within 16 to 20 weeks for written representations and 24 to 26 weeks for hearings and inquiries (paragraph 014), and explains awards of costs where a party behaves unreasonably causing unnecessary or wasted expense (paragraphs 030 to 035). Page last updated 2 April 2026.
  4. 4technicalvery strongThe Planning Inspectorate (GOV.UK), guidance.RN-F098UDThe Planning Inspectorate's official statistical release of 30 July 2026; it reports that 31% of section 78 planning appeals were allowed in April to June 2026.
  5. 5technicalvery strongDepartment for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (GOV.UK), guidance.RN-6RFQX1Planning Practice Guidance on pre-application engagement. It says councils may charge for pre-application advice, capped at cost, and are strongly encouraged to offer a basic free service.
  6. 6technicalvery strongThe National Archives, guidance.RN-R3M2ORSection 191 of the 1990 Act. Subsection (6) makes the lawfulness of anything covered by a certificate conclusively presumed, which is what protects owners from enforcement.
  7. 7technicalvery strongThe National Archives (legislation.gov.uk), legislation.RN-3YX7QWSection 192(1) lets any person apply to the local planning authority to determine whether a proposed use of buildings or land, or operations proposed to be carried out in, on, over or under land, would be lawful. Under section 192(2) the authority must issue a certificate if the information satisfies them that the use or operations would be lawful if instituted or begun at the time of the application and must otherwise refuse; the certificate must specify the land, describe the use or operations, give the reasons and state the application date (192(3)). Section 192(4) provides that the lawfulness of any use or operations for which a certificate is in force is conclusively presumed unless there is a material change in the relevant matters before the use is instituted or the operations begun.
  8. 8technicalvery strongPlanning Portal, guidance.RN-M2KUCTThe Planning Portal's consolidated guide to planning application fees in England from 1 April 2026, built from the 2012 fees regulations as amended and MHCLG's annual indexation. More usable than the regulations themselves because it puts each application type next to its current fee and its definition. The statutory amounts are in the regulations; this is the readable index to them.
  9. 9technicalstrongRoyal Town Planning Institute, guidance.RN-FGSAKEThe RTPI's page for its Directory of Planning Consultants: it lists only Chartered Members or Legal Associates of the RTPI practising in the UK who choose to be listed.

  1. Chartered Planner, Royal Town Planning Institute, accessed 30 September 2026. rtpi.org.uk

  2. The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015, Schedule 2, Part 1, The National Archives, accessed 14 September 2026. legislation.gov.uk

  3. Appeals, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (GOV.UK), accessed 30 September 2026. gov.uk

  4. Planning Inspectorate statistical release 30 July 2026, The Planning Inspectorate (GOV.UK), accessed 30 September 2026. gov.uk

  5. Before submitting an application, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (GOV.UK), accessed 30 September 2026. gov.uk

  6. Town and Country Planning Act 1990, section 191: Certificate of lawfulness of existing use or development, The National Archives, accessed 30 September 2026. legislation.gov.uk

  7. Town and Country Planning Act 1990, section 192: Certificate of lawfulness of proposed use or development, The National Archives, accessed 14 September 2026. legislation.gov.uk

  8. A guide to fees for Planning Applications in England, from 1 April 2026, Planning Portal, accessed 7 September 2026. ecab.planningportal.co.uk

  9. Directory of Planning Consultants, Royal Town Planning Institute, accessed 30 September 2026. rtpi.org.uk