Planning permission in East Devon
East Devon District Council decides planning applications in East Devon. This page shows the protected areas that affect what homeowners can build without planning permission, and the planning data East Devon publishes.
Conservation areas
East Devon has 32 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.
- Axminster
- Beer
- Brampford Speke
- Broadclyst
- Broadhembury
- Budleigh Salterton
- Chardstock
- Colyford
- Colyton
- Combpyne Rousdon (Rousdon Estate)
- Dunkeswell
- East Budleigh
- Exmouth
- Gittisham
- Honiton
- Kilmington
- Lympstone
- Musbury
- Otterton
- Ottery St Mary
- Salcombe Regis
- Seaton
- Sidbury
- Sidford
- Sidmouth Bickwell Valley
- Sidmouth Elysian Fields
- Sidmouth Sid Vale
- Sidmouth Town Centre
- Sowton
- Stockland
- Whimple
- Woodbury
Read more: extensions, loft dormers, garden rooms and solar panels in a conservation area.
Article 4 directions
East Devon hasn't published any Article 4 boundaries on planning.data.gov.uk. Most councils have at least one Article 4 direction, often in conservation areas, so check the council's website or ask its planning team before relying on permitted development.
What is an Article 4 direction?
National parks, National Landscapes and green belt
- National Landscapes (Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty) in or bordering East Devon: Blackdown Hills, Dorset, East Devon.
- World Heritage Site: Dorset and East Devon Coast.
National parks and National Landscapes restrict permitted development in similar ways to conservation areas. Read more: extensions, loft dormers and garden rooms.
Listed buildings and protected trees
Listed buildings everywhere in England are recorded by Historic England, and the checker looks for them at every address. East Devon 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.
East Devon 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 East Devon publishes
| Data | Status | Records |
|---|---|---|
| Conservation area boundaries | Published | 32 |
| Article 4 direction boundaries | Not published | 0 |
| Listed building outlines | Not published | 0 |
| Tree preservation order areas | Not published | 0 |
| Protected trees | Not published | 0 |
Planning work on a home in East Devon? Put a pin on your house and we'll check it against all of this.
Start a checkData from planning.data.gov.uk, published by East Devon District Council and national bodies under the Open Government Licence, last updated here on 30 October 2026. East Devon District Council website.