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Article 4 Directions

Last updated: 18 March 2026

For a general introduction to Article 4 Directions, including planning guidance for householders and businesses, see Permitted development rights — West Brackenfield District Council.

Under current planning legislation, certain alterations to property can be made without planning permission under permitted development rights. An Article 4 Direction removes some or all of these rights, meaning planning permission must be applied for before the affected works can be carried out.

West Brackenfield District Council has received government funding to improve its planning digital data through the MHCLG Digital Planning Improvement Fund. Article 4 Direction datasets were enhanced as part of this funding and are available from this page.

Datasets

Two datasets are available, and can also be explored on the map of planning data for England.

Dataset Description Download
Article 4 Direction areas Spatial dataset with a polygon boundary for each direction area article-4-direction-area.csv
Article 4 Direction documents List of source documents for each direction, including notices and boundary maps article-4-direction-document.csv
Licence and attribution This dataset has been published by West Brackenfield District Council under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Please acknowledge the information provider with this attribution statement: © West Brackenfield District Council, 2026, OGL v3.0.

Brackenfield Old Town

Reference: WBDC-A4D-001 Confirmed: 14 March 2019 Status: Active

Covers the historic core of West Brackenfield town centre, including the Market Square conservation area. Made to protect the character of the town centre and to manage the loss of commercial uses to residential.

Permitted development rights removed

  • Change of use from Class E (commercial, business and service) to residential (Class C3)
  • External alterations to buildings, including replacement of windows, doors and external cladding
  • Demolition of unlisted buildings within the conservation area

Documents

RefDocumentDownload
A4D-001-D01Article 4 Direction noticePDF, 180KB
A4D-001-D02Direction boundary mapPDF, 340KB
A4D-001-D03Statement of reasonsPDF, 95KB

Fenwick Road

Reference: WBDC-A4D-002 Confirmed: 22 July 2021 Status: Active

Covers a residential area in the north of the district where a high concentration of Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) has led to local amenity concerns.

Permitted development rights removed

  • Change of use to Houses in Multiple Occupation (Class C4)
  • Sub-division of dwelling houses into two or more separate dwellings

Documents

RefDocumentDownload
A4D-002-D01Article 4 Direction noticePDF, 160KB
A4D-002-D02Direction boundary mapPDF, 290KB
A4D-002-D03Statement of reasonsPDF, 88KB
A4D-002-D04HMO evidence basePDF, 210KB

Stonemoor Lane

Reference: WBDC-A4D-003 Confirmed: 5 November 2018 Status: Active

Applies to a suburban residential area in the east of the district. Made in response to concerns about the cumulative impact of extensions and outbuildings on the open character of back gardens and the street scene.

Permitted development rights removed

  • Single-storey rear extensions extending more than 3 metres from the original rear wall
  • Side extensions of any size
  • Outbuildings and garden structures exceeding 2.5 metres in height

Documents

RefDocumentDownload
A4D-003-D01Article 4 Direction noticePDF, 145KB
A4D-003-D02Direction boundary mapPDF, 310KB
A4D-003-D03Statement of reasonsPDF, 76KB

Holt Green

Reference: WBDC-A4D-004 Confirmed: 9 February 2023 Status: Active

Covers the recently designated Holt Green Conservation Area on the western edge of West Brackenfield. Made alongside the conservation area designation to protect the Victorian-era character of this neighbourhood.

Permitted development rights removed

  • External alterations including replacement of windows, doors and rainwater goods
  • Roof alterations including dormer windows and rooflights on front slopes
  • Installation of satellite dishes and antennae on front elevations

Documents

RefDocumentDownload
A4D-004-D01Article 4 Direction noticePDF, 170KB
A4D-004-D02Direction boundary mapPDF, 380KB
A4D-004-D03Statement of reasonsPDF, 92KB
A4D-004-D04Conservation area appraisalPDF, 2.4MB

Thornwick Business Park

Reference: WBDC-A4D-005 Confirmed: 17 September 2020 Status: Active

Covers the Thornwick Business Park employment area in the south of the district. Made to protect the district's employment land supply from conversion to residential and other non-employment uses.

Permitted development rights removed

  • Change of use from Class E(g) (offices, research and development, light industrial) to residential (Class C3)
  • Change of use to Class F (local community and learning uses)

Documents

RefDocumentDownload
A4D-005-D01Article 4 Direction noticePDF, 155KB
A4D-005-D02Direction boundary mapPDF, 420KB
A4D-005-D03Statement of reasonsPDF, 115KB
A4D-005-D04Employment land review extractPDF, 680KB

Millgate Riverside

Reference: WBDC-A4D-006 Confirmed: 30 May 2022 Status: Active

Applies to the Millgate Riverside regeneration area to ensure planning oversight during the area's transition. Within Flood Zone 2; made to allow proper assessment of development proposals.

Permitted development rights removed

  • Demolition of buildings with a footprint over 50 square metres
  • Change of use of ground floor premises
  • Hard surfacing of front gardens and forecourts

Documents

RefDocumentDownload
A4D-006-D01Article 4 Direction noticePDF, 190KB
A4D-006-D02Direction boundary mapPDF, 510KB
A4D-006-D03Statement of reasonsPDF, 130KB
A4D-006-D04Flood risk assessment extractPDF, 890KB