Editorial Policy
How our editorial team writes, reviews, source-checks, and updates UK planning information for accuracy, usefulness, and user safety.
Editorial Policy
Our editorial policy explains how ukplanningportal.org/ creates, checks, updates, and corrects informational planning content. The goal is to publish useful pages that help visitors understand the planning process without pretending to replace official council advice or professional judgement.
Human Editorial Review
Every important page is reviewed by a human before publication. We check whether the page explains the user task clearly, whether the correct official office is mentioned, whether the page includes enough practical steps, and whether risk areas such as permission, enforcement, fees, appeals, listed buildings, and building control are handled with safe wording.
Official-Source Preference
When a topic needs factual support, we prefer official sources such as GOV.UK, the official Planning Portal, local authority planning pages, building control pages, planning application registers, appeal guidance, legislation, and official public notices. Third-party summaries can help us understand the topic, but official sources take priority.
Editorial Rules We Follow
- Write in plain English for homeowners and local users.
- Explain planning permission and building regulations as separate issues where relevant.
- Do not claim that a project is definitely lawful without directing users to official confirmation.
- Do not claim to be GOV.UK, the official Planning Portal, or a local planning authority.
- Use caution language when deadlines, enforcement, refusals, appeals, fees, or legal rights may be involved.
- Manually review important links, addresses, maps, and contact details where available.
- Update pages when users report verified corrections or when official sources change.
How We Handle Sensitive Planning Topics
Some planning topics can have financial, legal, neighbour, or enforcement consequences. Examples include retrospective planning permission, enforcement notices, listed building consent, conservation areas, lawful development certificates, appeal deadlines, building control approval, and objections to planning applications. For these topics we use careful educational wording and encourage official or professional advice before action.
Clarity
We make planning terms easier to understand.
Verification
We check official links and council details manually where possible.
Correction
We welcome reports when a page needs updating.