Guide · 6 min read
Do you need permission for a business sign?
Many non-illuminated signs on your own premises are allowed without applying, under what England calls deemed consent, but most illuminated signs and anything over the size or height limits need express consent from the council. Decisions usually take up to 8 weeks, and consent is normally granted for 5 years.
What is advertisement consent?
Advertisement consent is the permission a council gives to display a sign, and it is separate from planning permission. In England the rules are the Town and Country Planning (Control of Advertisements) (England) Regulations 2007, and they cover fascia signs, projecting signs, lettering, totems and most other outdoor advertisements.
Every sign falls into one of three routes. It is either excluded from control altogether, allowed without applying under 'deemed consent' as long as it stays within set limits, or it needs 'express consent', which means a formal application to the council's planning department.
When does a sign have deemed consent?
In England, a non-illuminated sign on your own business premises usually has deemed consent if no letter or symbol is taller than 0.75 m (0.3 m in an area of special control) and the top of the sign is no higher than the bottom of any first-floor window. That covers many flat fascia panels, tray signs and unlit lettering on ordinary high streets.
Illuminated signs are a different matter. Deemed consent for lit signs is limited, and it does not apply in conservation areas, National Parks, National Landscapes (formerly AONBs), the Broads or areas of special control. In practice, most internally lit and halo-lit fascia signs, and most illuminated projecting signs, need express consent.
Deemed consent is not a blanket pass. The council can still act against a sign that harms the look of an area or causes a safety problem, so it pays to check before you order.
How do the rules differ in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland?
The system is similar across the UK, but the regulations, limits and application routes differ, so always check with the council for the address. The main rules are:
- Wales: the Town and Country Planning (Control of Advertisements) Regulations 1992 (as amended) still apply, with a similar deemed and express consent system.
- Scotland: the Town and Country Planning (Control of Advertisements) (Scotland) Regulations 1984 (as amended); applications go to the council, usually through eDevelopment.scot.
- Northern Ireland: the Planning (Control of Advertisements) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2015; applications go to the council through the NI Planning Portal.
What does the council look at?
Councils judge an advertisement on two grounds only: amenity and public safety. Amenity means the visual effect on the building and the street, including size, position, materials, colours, lighting and how the sign sits alongside neighbouring shopfronts and any historic character.
Public safety is mainly about road users and pedestrians. The council considers whether a sign could distract drivers, be confused with traffic signals, block sight lines at a junction or project dangerously over a pavement. Brightness is part of both tests, and many councils refer to the Institution of Lighting Professionals' guidance PLG05 when setting luminance limits.
The council looks at how a sign looks and how safe it is, not at what it says, so your wording and branding are your choice.
What do you need to apply for express consent?
An express consent application needs the form, the council's fee and drawings that show exactly what will go up and where. Councils publish their own validation checklists, so check the list for your area before you submit. We can prepare the drawings and photos you need for an advertisement consent application, or submit it for you. A typical pack includes:
- A site location plan with the property outlined.
- A scaled elevation of the frontage showing the sign's position, size and height above the ground.
- A drawing of the sign itself with dimensions, materials, colours and letter heights.
- For lit signs, the method of illumination and its brightness, given as luminance in candelas per square metre (cd/m²).
- For projecting signs, the projection from the wall and the clearance above the pavement.
- Clear photographs of the existing frontage.
How long does consent take and how long does it last?
Express consent decisions usually take up to 8 weeks from when the council accepts the application as valid. Missing or unclear drawings are a common cause of delay, so a complete pack at the start saves time.
Consent is normally granted for 5 years and may come with conditions, such as a maximum brightness or set hours of illumination. Keep the decision notice with your lease papers, because a landlord, buyer or sign-maker may ask to see it later.
If you are working towards an opening date, build the consent period into your plan from the start. Nothing needs to be made until you approve the design, so the drawings can go in first and manufacture can follow the decision.
What happens if you put a sign up without consent?
Displaying an advertisement without the consent it needs is an offence, and councils can take enforcement action. That usually starts with a request to apply retrospectively or take the sign down, and it can lead to prosecution if the sign stays up.
A retrospective application is possible, but if it is refused you lose the cost of the sign and the fitting as well as the time. Checking first is almost always cheaper than taking the risk, which is why we check the consent position before you commit.
Want a second opinion on your sign?
Send a photo and a rough size. We’ll tell you what would work, what it’s likely to cost and whether consent is needed.