The changes mean that developers can convert offices, agricultural buildings, and other commercial buildings into homes without planning permission, speeding up the development process. 

The government said PDRs can help speed up housing delivery by reducing the “bureaucratic burdens” of the planning system.

It said PDRs can help meet its target of delivering 300,000 new homes a year by the mid-2020s.

In the seven years between 2015/16 and 2022/23, a total of 102,830 new homes were created through change-of-use PDRs.

This amounts to almost half (47%) of the total number of new homes created through change of use (which was 220,060) since 2015/16 and around 6% of the net additional homes delivered since 2015/16 (1.8 million in total).

This does come with some restrictions, as most PDRs are subject to certain conditions and limitations.

Work that may be otherwise covered by PDRs may also be restricted in certain protected areas (for example, National Parks and conservation areas) and for listed buildings.

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An LPA can also restrict certain PDRs in part of its local area using an article 4 direction (so planning permission is required to carry out development that would otherwise be covered by PDRs). 

Government guidance advises LPAs to use article 4 directions in “a measured and targeted way”.

Some development is covered by PDRs but requires “prior approval” from the LPA with regards to conditions set out in the General Permitted Development Order (such as design and external appearance).

When deciding a ‘prior approval’ application, an LPA can only consider the conditions set out in the General Permitted Development Order for that type of development.

However, a 2020 study commissioned by the government found that homes created through PDRs resulted in “worse quality residential environments” than those that required planning permission from the LPA.

The researchers argued that there was a need “to look beyond overall headline numbers to consider whether we are creating the right type of housing, in the right places”.