Window planning checker for Lewes houses and flats

The building is listed

Listed building consent is needed for any work that affects the building's character as a building of special interest, and that includes replacing windows and doors on any side. In Lewes, Kingston, Glynde, Rodmell and Offham the application goes to the South Downs National Park Authority. In Ringmer, Barcombe and the parts of Cooksbridge outside the Park, it goes to Lewes District Council.

Expect to be steered to repair first, then to timber made to the pattern of what is there. Where draughts and noise are the problem, secondary glazing fitted inside the old sash is often the easier consent. As an indicative market range, not a quote, a secondary unit for a 900 by 1800 sash opening costs about £450 to £1,200 including VAT, supplied and fitted.

Frames that fit: timber box sash, or timber flush casements for cottages built with casements. Read listed buildings in Lewes.

You are not sure whether it is listed

Find out before anything else. Search the National Heritage List by street. Some Lewes entries cover several houses at once, such as 120 and 121 High Street, so read the entry rather than relying on the house number. If the result is still unclear, ask the planning authority. Do not order frames until you know.

It is a flat

Flats do not have the householder permitted development rights that houses have. If new windows would change how the building looks, for example timber to uPVC or a different bar pattern, planning permission is needed wherever the flat is. Exact like-for-like replacements that leave the appearance unchanged are generally not treated as development. Check the lease too, since most need the freeholder's consent for new windows.

A house in the Lewes conservation area, on a side facing a road, path, the river or open space

This is where the Article 4 direction applies. It removes permitted development rights for alterations to houses on elevations facing a highway, waterway or open space, so changing these windows or the front door needs planning permission from the South Downs National Park Authority, unless the new ones match the old so closely that the look does not change.

Timber to the existing pattern is the route most likely to be approved. A uPVC sash with woodgrain, horns and run-through bars is a route some owners apply for, but approval is not certain and depends on the building and the street. Ask the Authority before you commit.

Frames that fit: timber box sash first, uPVC sash only with permission. Read the conservation area and Article 4.

A house in the Lewes conservation area, on a side facing only a private garden

The Article 4 direction is aimed at elevations facing public places, so a back wall facing only a garden is usually outside it. Normal permitted development applies, including the condition that materials should be of similar appearance to the existing house.

Check one thing first: some Lewes back walls face a twitten or a car park. A public path is legally a highway, so ask the Authority if your rear wall faces one.

Frames that fit: uPVC sash or timber sash.

A house in Kingston, Glynde, Rodmell or Offham

These villages are inside the National Park, and each has a conservation area. The South Downs National Park Authority's register of Article 4 directions lists none for Kingston, Glynde or Offham. Rodmell has one from 1973 for The Drove, The Brooks, so if your house is there, read it or ask before ordering. Otherwise an unlisted house in these villages usually keeps its permitted development rights for windows of similar appearance.

Frames that fit: flush casements for flint cottages, sashes where the house was built with them.

A house in Ringmer, Barcombe or Cooksbridge

These villages lie outside the National Park, so the planning authority is Lewes District Council. Ringmer has a conservation area around the Green, and Barcombe Cross has its own, with others elsewhere in Barcombe parish. Lewes District Council's Article 4 register lists none for these villages. For an unlisted house, window replacement of similar appearance is normally permitted development.

Frames that fit: flush or chamfered casements for the post-war and later houses, sashes for older houses built with them.

A house in Lewes outside the conservation area

Parts of Lewes outside the conservation area boundary are still inside the National Park. For an unlisted house, replacement windows of similar appearance are normally permitted development, with the South Downs National Park Authority as the planning authority if a question does arise.

Frames that fit: flush casements or uPVC sash, matched to how the house was built.