Introduction

Planning decisions and actions by local planning authorities (LPAs), the Secretary of State and other public bodies can be challenged in the courts if the decision taken was unlawful.

Most planning decisions can be challenged through an application to the High Court for judicial review (see Practice Note: planning judicial review).

However, there are instances where the relevant statutory regime governing a particular decision or action expressly prevents the decision or action from being challenged in court, including via judicial review, other than by way of a statutory application. In other words, the relevant legislation will expressly state that a particular action or decision cannot be challenged except in accordance with a specific statutory provision. Such challenges are known as statutory reviews or statutory challenges.

This Practice Note focuses on the provisions for applications for statutory planning review (commonly referred to as ‘applications’ rather than ‘claims’ although the terms are used interchangeably), which in a planning context comprise: