Working from home is a cost-effective and flexible solution for most SMEs and start-ups to grow their business. However, for many SMEs, working from a spare bedroom or kitchen table can only get you so far before you need to create a dedicated workspace in your home.
Having a dedicated space is one of the best tips for running a business from home. It allows you to create a space to focus, ‘clock in’ and dedicate time to your business – without letting your home life creep into the picture.
Similarly, it allows you to ‘clock out’ at the end of the day to enjoy that all-important work-life balance without needing to take out your laptop or answer emails.
So let’s move onto the ins and outs of making a dedicated business space at home – and answer the all-important question: do you need planning permission for your dream home office?
Planning permission depends on your business and clients
Anyone can run a business from home. But there are a few factors that mean that you will have to get permission, including what type of business you’re running, whether you will have clients inside the house and ultimately, what structural changes you want to implement.
Generally speaking, if you’re planning on using the space you already have (like a kitchen or a bedroom) and aren’t having any clients or staff on your property, then you will be able to do this without permission.
If you’re renting a property, you might also need to get permission from your landlord depending on the contract that you have in place.
To help you understand whether you need planning permission or not, we’ll go through some of the most common business setups and the permissions involved.
Putting a home office in an existing room
If you want to put a home office in an existing room in your home, such as a spare bedroom or in your kitchen, you won’t need any planning permission to do this.
However, this does not mean that you will be allowed to have visitors to your property (either clients, customers, or staff) or have a sign or advertisement outside. If one of these options applies to you, read on below to find out how to apply for permission.
If it’s a case of getting a desk put up and a computer plugged in, you’re ready to go with no planning permission. It is worth pointing out that most home building and contents insurance don’t cover your business – so it might be worth considering taking out business insurance for extra protection.
Building a home office in your garden
The rules on planning permission state that “incidental” buildings such as sheds and summerhouses can be built without planning permission, provided that they aren’t breaking any height or location restrictions. So, it might be natural to assume that building a shed for your office is a great loophole to take advantage of.
The key word in planning permission rules is “incidental”. This basically means that if you were planning to use the new shed as an official place to carry out your business, but primarily use it for leisure or social, you wouldn’t need planning permission.
However, if you were going to use this office 5 days a week as your primary working location, this is not classified as “incidental use”. Therefore, you must get planning permission before building an office in your garden.
And trust us, when it comes to planning permission it’s always better to wait for approval than have your building taken down.
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Extending or changing your property for your business
If you want to make any structural changes to your property for your business, such as building an extension or converting a garage or a loft, then it’s likely that you may need planning permission.
It all depends on whether the work is classed as ‘development’ – i.e. if it falls under one of these classifications:
- Construction or alterations: Building new structures or modifying existing ones.
- Changes in use: Converting a property from one use to another (e.g., changing the use from residential to commercial use)
- Engineering works: Activities like excavation or groundwork.
- Mining: Extracting minerals from the land.
There is some wiggle room in the building though. If you’re making an extension, you can build a single-story extension up to 3 or 4 meters (respective for detached or attached properties) using permitted development. Make sure you check your local council’s guidelines for full restrictions on height, width and location.
If your planned extension goes beyond the permitted development, or if you plan on doing other work that falls under the development classification, you will need to apply for planning permission.
Having visitors to your home office
If your business relies on having visits from clients, you will most likely need planning permission.
This is because home businesses often fall under the category of “commercial use”, and can have a big impact on your neighbours. Generally speaking, the more clients you see and the more noisy your business is, the more likely you will need to have planning permission.
If client visits are few and far between, for instance, if you’re an accountant who mostly does online appointments, but will occasionally have a client in, then you might not need planning permission to accommodate these visits.
If you plan on having visitors, we’d recommend checking with your local planning authority to determine the specific requirements for your situation. They can provide guidance on whether planning permission is necessary and what conditions may apply.
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Time to plan your successful home business
Now we’ve covered the question of do you need planning permission for a home office, as well as some of the ins and outs of insurance when working from home – it’s time to focus on growing your business.
That’s where we can help. For more tips on running your business from home, find out what advice our experts have in store with this in-depth guide to running your business from home.
If you have more questions about running your business from home, we have the answers on our FAQ page.
For all other business tips, news and advice, keep up to date with Business4Beginners.
