Planning Policy

Planning permission in Medway

Medway Council is the local planning authority for Medway, a unitary authority in the South East. Below is what its official planning data shows, what it means for the most common projects, and how to get a verified report for your exact address.

The short answer

Do you need planning permission in Medway?

It depends on your exact address. Many householder projects are permitted development and need no application — but Medway Council has 24 conservation areas and 47 Article 4 directions, and inside those the permitted development route narrows or disappears. Every application is decided against national policy and Medway Council’s adopted Local Plan. A report for your postcode tells you exactly which apply.

1.0 — The official data

What Medway has published

Dataset · national planning data indexPublished
Conservation areas24
Article 4 direction areas (permitted development removed)47
Tree preservation zones554
Listed building outlines653
Local Plan documents0

Counts are read from planning.data.gov.uk and refreshed daily. A zero or dash means the council has not yet published that dataset to the national index — not that the designation doesn’t exist on the ground. We show what we found and tell you what we didn’t. We never infer a restriction — or the absence of one — from missing data.

2.0 — By project

Planning permission for your project in Medway

What the rules mean for the most common householder projects in Medway — each grounded in the council’s designations and the official permitted-development limits.

3.0 — What this means

Reading Medway’s planning landscape

With 24 conservation areas on the official index, design and character carry real weight in Medway decisions. Inside a conservation area the bar for external alterations rises, and some permitted development rights narrow — which side of a boundary your property sits on can change your project’s planning route entirely. Browse Medway’s conservation areas →

Medway Council has 47 Article 4 direction areas in force. An Article 4 direction removes specific permitted development rights, so work that would normally need no application — certain extensions, alterations, even paving — can require full permission. This is the single most common surprise we find for homeowners, and it is address-specific.

Every application in Medway is decided against national policy (the NPPF) and Medway Council’s adopted Local Plan. A Planning Policy report quotes the specific policies that apply to your project — verbatim, verified, and linked to the official documents.

Your report

Get a planning report for your Medway address

A Planning Policy report applies the official rules to your exact property: the designations on your address, the policies that bear on your project — quoted verbatim — and what decided applications nearby show. Generated in minutes.

4.0 — Questions

Planning in Medway, answered

Do I need planning permission for an extension in Medway?
It depends on your address. Many extensions fall under permitted development, but designations change the answer street by street — and Medway Council has 47 Article 4 direction areas where permitted development rights are removed. A Planning Policy report reads the official data for your exact postcode.
How many conservation areas are there in Medway?
Medway Council has 24 conservation areas published to the national planning data index. Inside one, the design bar is higher and some permitted development rights are restricted.
Where can I read Medway's local planning policies?
Medway Council decides applications against its adopted Local Plan alongside national policy (the NPPF). A Planning Policy report quotes the specific policies that apply to your project, verbatim and linked to the official documents, and the council's own site is https://www.medway.gov.uk.
What does a planning report for a Medway address include?
Your site at a glance (every designation on your property, linked to its official record), the national and local policies that apply to your project, the likely blockers, things to consider, and — on the Pro report — real decided applications near you with outcomes. Every quote is verified character-for-character against its source before the report generates.
5.0 — Nearby authorities

Other councils in the South East