The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015

Class M – extensions etc for schools, colleges, universities and hospitals

Permitted development

M.  The erection, extension or alteration of a school, college, university or hospital building.

Development not permitted

M.1  Development is not permitted by Class M—

(a) if the cumulative gross floor space of any buildings erected, extended or altered would exceed—

(i) 25% of the gross floor space of the original school, college, university or hospital buildings; or

(ii) 100 square metres,

whichever is the lesser;

(b) if any part of the development would be within 5 metres of a boundary of the curtilage of the premises;

(c) if, as a result of the development, any land used as a playing field at any time in the 5 years before the development commenced and remaining in this use could no longer be so used;

(d) if the height of any new building erected would exceed 5 metres;

(e) if the height of the building as extended or altered would exceed—

(i) if within 10 metres of a boundary of the curtilage of the premises, 5 metres; or

(ii) in all other cases, the height of the building being extended or altered;

(f) if the development would be within the curtilage of a listed building; or

(g) unless—

(i) in the case of school, college or university buildings, the predominant use of the existing buildings on the premises is for the provision of education;

(ii) in the case of hospital buildings, the predominant use of the existing buildings on the premises is for the provision of any medical or health services.

Conditions

M.2  Development is permitted by Class M subject to the following conditions—

(a) the development is within the curtilage of an existing school, college, university or hospital;

(b) the development is only used as part of, or for a purpose incidental to, the use of that school, college, university or hospital;

(c) any new building erected is, in the case of article 2(3) land, constructed using materials which have a similar external appearance to those used for the original school, college, university or hospital buildings; and

(d) any extension or alteration is, in the case of article 2(3) land, constructed using materials which have a similar external appearance to those used for the building being extended or altered.

Interpretation of Class M

M.3  For the purposes of Class M—

“original school, college, university or hospital building” means any original building which is a school, college, university or hospital building, as the case may be, other than any building erected at any time under Class M; and

“school” does not include a building which changed use by virtue of Class S of Part 3 of this Schedule (changes of use),

where 2 or more original buildings are within the same curtilage and are used for the same institution, they are to be treated as a single original building in making any measurement.