A condition precedent is the most important type of planning condition — and ignoring one can invalidate your entire permission.
A condition precedent is a planning condition that must be satisfied before any work begins on site. It's called a 'precedent' because compliance must occur before (precede) the start of development. Typical examples: submitting and getting approval for materials samples; providing drainage details; completing an archaeological watching brief.
If you start work without discharging a condition precedent, the development is technically unauthorised from the moment the first spade goes in. Your planning permission is still valid on paper, but the development is in breach of it — which means the council can take enforcement action and, in serious cases, require demolition.
Look for language like: 'before development commences', 'prior to the commencement of development', or 'no development shall take place until'. These phrases signal a condition precedent. Conditions worded with 'before occupation' or 'during construction' are not precedent conditions — they apply later.
Submit a discharge of condition application to your council. This costs £34 per request (or £116 for householder applications where multiple conditions are being discharged at once). The council must respond within 8 weeks. Only start work once you have written confirmation that the condition is discharged.
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