Planning permission in Bury
Most single-storey rear extensions within the national permitted development limits don't need planning permission in Bury. The rules are stricter in its 12 conservation areas, where side extensions, two-storey extensions and loft dormers need permission. 2 of its Article 4 areas remove some or all house extension rights. Check your address to see which rules apply.
Bury at a glance
- Conservation areas
- 12
- Article 4 areas
- 3
- Protected landscapes
- None
- Planning decisions
- Bury Metropolitan Borough Council
How many conservation areas are there in Bury?
Bury has 12 conservation areas. In a conservation area, permitted development rights are reduced: side extensions, two-storey extensions, loft dormers and cladding all need planning permission, and many councils add Article 4 directions on top.
- Ainsworth Village
- All Saints, Whitefield
- Brooksbottoms and Rowlands
- Bury Town Centre
- Holcombe Village
- Mount Pleasant
- Poppythorn, Prestwich
- Pot Green, Holcombe Brook
- Ramsbottom
- St. Mary's, Prestwich
- Summerseat
- Walmersley
Read more: extensions, loft dormers, garden rooms and solar panels in a conservation area.
Does Bury have Article 4 directions?
Bury has published 3 Article 4 areas. Inside them, some permitted development rights are removed, so work that would normally be allowed needs planning permission.
The rights they remove most often:
- House extensions (Part 1 Class A, in 2 of the areas)
- Loft dormers and other roof extensions (Part 1 Class B, in 2 of the areas)
- Other roof alterations, such as rooflights (Part 1 Class C, in 2 of the areas)
- Porches (Part 1 Class D, in 2 of the areas)
- Garden buildings and outbuildings (Part 1 Class E, in 2 of the areas)
- Hard surfaces, such as paved driveways (Part 1 Class F, in 2 of the areas)
- Chimneys, flues and soil pipes (Part 1 Class G, in 2 of the areas)
- Walls, fences and gates (Part 2 Class A, in 1 of the areas)
- New access onto a road (Part 2 Class B, in 1 of the areas)
- Painting the outside of a building (Part 2 Class C, in 1 of the areas)
Directions listed by Bury:
- Bury Borough HMO
- Holcombe
- St. Mary's, Prestwich
What is an Article 4 direction?
Is any of Bury in a national park, National Landscape or green belt?
- There is green belt in or bordering Bury. Householder permitted development rights apply as normal in the green belt, but if you need planning permission, green belt policy limits how much a home can be enlarged.
Listed buildings and protected trees in Bury
Listed buildings everywhere in England are recorded by Historic England, and the checker looks for them at every address. Bury doesn't publish listed building outlines, so where a listed building is recorded near an address, we ask the homeowner to check whether it's theirs.
Bury doesn't publish its tree preservation orders as data. If there are mature trees near your project, ask the council whether any are protected before you start.
What planning data does Bury publish?
| Data | Status | Records |
|---|---|---|
| Conservation area boundaries | Published | 12 |
| Article 4 direction boundaries | Published | 3 |
| Listed building outlines | Not published | 0 |
| Tree preservation order areas | Not published | 0 |
| Protected trees | Not published | 0 |
Planning work on a home in Bury? Put a pin on your house and we'll check it against all of this.
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Data from planning.data.gov.uk, published by Bury Metropolitan Borough Council and national bodies under the Open Government Licence, last updated here on 31 October 2026. Bury Metropolitan Borough Council website.