Usually not — but it depends on drainage. Since 2008, a front-garden driveway over five square metres needs planning permission if it uses an impermeable surface draining straight onto the road. Use a permeable surface, or drain the run-off to a soakaway or border inside your boundary, and it stays within permitted development. We design every driveway to be compliant and we'll tell you at quote stage which category yours falls into. Conservation areas can be tighter, so we'd check with the council first.
If you're creating a new access from the road, yes — and it's a separate application to the council's highways department, not part of planning permission. It has to be carried out by an approved contractor. We can advise on what's involved and coordinate the timing, so your driveway isn't finished before you can actually drive onto it.
Expect the area to be unusable for the duration of the works — excavation, sub-base, then surfacing. How long depends on the size, the surface you choose and how much the ground needs preparing, and some surfaces need curing time before you can park on them. We'll give you a realistic day-by-day plan with your quote so you can arrange parking in advance.
