Changes to Use Classes Order to be introduced imminently

In July the government announced changes to the Use Classes Order in England which, since 1987, has been the primary legislative tool to control changes of use within property. These changes will take and will provide greater flexibility to repurpose property which has become redundant and protect uses which are the lifeblood of communities and will not be covered by the changes.

The main changes are:

• Use Classes A, B1 and D1 (retail, office and non-residential institutions and assembly and leisure) are being removed and merged into a newly created Use Classes E (commercial, business and service), F1 (learning and non-residential institutions) and F2 (local community use). The practical effect of this will be that owners/occupiers can change use within new Class E without planning permission (subject to any specific controls).
• The new Use Class F2 (local community uses) will protect shops no larger than 280m2, selling mostly essential goods and at least one kilometre from another similar shop, particularly where there are few facilities.

Darren Bond, global managing director at Christie & Co, said: “As these government changes to the Use Classes Order have been pushed through quite quickly, there are still questions around the impact to each of the sectors in which we operate. The removal of red tape will bring a boost to the high street and, in many cases, will allow property owners to consider alternative options more easily.”

He added: “As always, there will be winners and losers, at a challenging time for a number of our sectors still coming to terms with the longer-term impact of Covid-19.”

In a separate change, two new General Permitted Development Order Regulations are being introduced on 31 August 2020 to allow the construction of additional storeys on some buildings, as well as the demolition and redevelopment of freestanding blocks of flats and certain commercial buildings for residential purposes.