Planning Policy
Planning Policy / Planning / Croydon / Driveway or hard surface

Driveway or hard surface in Croydon

Do you need planning permission for a driveway in Croydon? Here is what the permitted development rules say, how London Borough of Croydon’s designations change them, and what decides an application, grounded in the official guidance and quoted verbatim.

Paved driveway and frontage of a residential house
Driveway: permeable surfaces changed the rules for front gardens
The short answer

Do you need planning permission for a driveway in Croydon?

Replacing a driveway is permitted development under Class F where the surface is porous, or where rainwater drains to a permeable area within the property rather than to the highway. Whether a driveway needs permission in Croydon still depends on your exact address and the designations on it.

1.0: The permitted development position

The starting point

Replacing a driveway is permitted development under Class F where the surface is porous, or where rainwater drains to a permeable area within the property rather than to the highway.

“This provides permitted development rights within the curtilage of a house for - (a) the provision of a hard surface for any purpose incidental to the enjoyment of the dwellinghouse as such”PD technical guidance, Class F · full text in the library → · official source →
2.0: What changes it in Croydon

How Croydon’s designations apply

Designation in CroydonPublished
Conservation areas20
Article 4 directions (PD removed)0
Listed building outlines0

A non-permeable surface over five square metres draining to the road needs permission; a dropped kerb for vehicle access is a separate highways consent. Counts are read live from planning.data.gov.uk; your report checks them against your exact address.

3.0: How it’s decided

What Croydon weighs

A non-permeable surface over five square metres draining to the road needs permission; a dropped kerb for vehicle access is a separate highways consent.

As a London borough, London Borough of Croydon also decides against the London Plan 2021 (the strategic policy layer for all 33 boroughs), alongside national policy and its own Local Plan.

Your report

Get a planning report for your Croydon address

A Planning Policy report reads the designations on your exact Croydon address, quotes the London Borough of Croydon and national policies that apply to a driveway, and (on Pro) shows decided applications nearby with outcomes.

5.0: Questions

Driveway or hard surface in Croydon, answered

Do I need planning permission for a driveway in Croydon?
Replacing a driveway is permitted development under Class F where the surface is porous, or where rainwater drains to a permeable area within the property rather than to the highway. Whether a driveway needs permission in Croydon still depends on your exact address and the designations on it.
Does a conservation area affect a driveway in Croydon?
It can. Even where the size limits are met, London Borough of Croydon assesses the appearance of a driveway against the character of a conservation area, and on a listed building separate consent is required.
How does Croydon decide a driveway or hard surface application?
A non-permeable surface over five square metres draining to the road needs permission; a dropped kerb for vehicle access is a separate highways consent. A Planning Policy report quotes the specific London Borough of Croydon Local Plan and national policies that apply, verbatim, and shows decided applications nearby.
6.0: More for Croydon

Other projects in Croydon