A pre-commencement condition, discovered after commencement
Planning approval arrives, the client is delighted and the contractor is lined up. The decision notice has fourteen conditions. Some are straightforward: build in accordance with the approved drawings. Others require submissions: materials samples before above-ground works, a construction management plan before any work, a landscaping scheme before occupation, details of obscure glazing before installation.
The contractor starts on site. Two weeks later someone realises the construction management plan condition required approval before any work began. How serious that is depends on the council and the condition, but it is exactly the kind of thing nobody wants to explain to a client.
Why conditions slip through
The decision notice is read carefully when it arrives, and then filed. Conditions have different trigger points, such as before commencement, before a particular stage of works, before occupation, and different owners: the architect, the client, the contractor, a consultant. Council approval of each submission takes weeks. No one list tracks them all through the build.
- Conditions are read once from a PDF and not tracked.
- Trigger points vary, and pre-commencement ones are the most time-sensitive.
- Information comes from the contractor, consultants and client.
- Discharge applications and council responses are in different inboxes.
- The contractor may not see the conditions at all.
What a missed condition costs
Depending on the condition and the council, consequences can range from a stern letter to enforcement action, and the right response is a matter for the client and, where needed, their planning adviser. For the practice, it means urgent unplanned work, possible delay on site and a strained client relationship. Even when nothing goes wrong, tracking conditions in memory is stressful for the project architect.
A conditions register from the decision notice
- When a decision notice arrives, it is read and each condition is extracted with its number, full text and reason.
- A language model suggests the trigger point for each condition, such as before commencement, before a stage of works or before occupation, and the type of submission needed. The project architect confirms or corrects every one.
- Each condition is assigned an owner, such as architect, client, contractor or a named consultant, and a target date linked to the construction programme.
- Submissions for discharge are tracked: information requested from the owner, application submitted, council reference, and decision received.
- Warnings go to the owner and project architect as each trigger point approaches, with pre-commencement conditions highlighted before the start date.
- The contractor can be given a read-only view of conditions that affect site work.
- Discharge decisions are filed with the project, and the register shows at a glance what remains outstanding.
The register helps organise the work of discharging conditions. Interpreting what a condition requires, and whether it is met, remains a matter for the project team and the council.
The register for one project
| Condition | Trigger | Owner | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Construction management plan | Before any works | Contractor | Submitted, awaiting council |
| Materials samples | Before above-ground works | Architect | Samples requested |
| Obscure glazing details | Before installation | Architect | Not started |
| Landscaping scheme | Before occupation | Landscape consultant | Not started |
An illustration of the structure, not a real decision notice.
Construction with conditions under control
Everyone involved knows which conditions are theirs and when they are due. The project architect is not relying on memory as the start date approaches. Clients get a clear picture of what must happen before work starts and before they can move in, which also helps manage their expectations about timing.
Is this how your practice handles conditions?
- Conditions are tracked from the decision notice PDF.
- Pre-commencement conditions have been noticed late.
- Contractors are not always aware of conditions affecting their work.
- Discharge applications are chased from individual inboxes.