Building Control with Planning Portal: What Councils are saying

Since launching our integrated Building Control Portal at the start of 2024, we’ve facilitated over 20,000 application submissions across England and Wales, transferring more than £11 million in building control fees to local authority teams. During that time we’ve worked closely with local authorities across the country as they embed the service into their day-to-day operations, and begin to see the benefits in practice. 

As with our national planning application service, Planning Portal’s integrated Building Control Portal is free for local authorities to use, meaning councils can realise the efficiencies of an integrated Building Control application service without additional cost. From reduced data entry to faster validation, from clearer communication with applicants to straightforward, secure payment processing; authorities are already seeing practical improvements in how Building Control applications are managed. 

Local authority insights

Over recent months, local authorities have shared practical feedback with us, highlighting what’s working well, where efficiencies are being achieved, and the value being delivered for both teams and customers.

With 60% of councils now onboarded and growing, these insights are helping to shape the ongoing development of the service, keeping it grounded in real-world working patterns and customer needs.

Rather than telling their stories ourselves, we wanted to share them directly through the voices of the councils using the service – so here’s what local authorities are saying about their experience using our Building Control Portal.

South Thames Gateway Building Control

“Since subscribing to the Planning Portal’s Building Control module, it has opened another route for our customers to engage with us. The ability to transfer information from a planning application to building control saves customers time and is more efficient. As a marketing tool it highlights prominently our local authority partnership and reaches those customers who are unaware of the process – but need building regulations. In the first 6 weeks of going live, it generated just over £9,000 in new business.”

Maidstone Borough Council

“Maidstone Building Control have been using the Planning Portal platform for a number of months now, and we are finding the system straightforward and easy to use, allowing all members of the team to access applications and download documents to ensure a smooth transition onto our internal system.” 

“The payment system ensures applications can be made valid immediately without the need to contact the customer for payment. A remittance is sent following the application, allowing us to confirm payments with our finance department.  

“Our main users are architects that have already used the Planning Portal for a planning application, but we hope to get more applications sent to us from applicants. The addition of being able to provide quotes is brilliant as it allows the customer to then apply once the quote has been submitted back to them. Overall, our experience so far using the Planning Portal has been impressive and we hope to continue to use this more and more going forward.” 

West Suffolk Council

“Since going live with the Planning Portal Building Control module, we’ve seen a real improvement in how smoothly things run. The platform integrates seamlessly with our back-office system, pulling data through automatically and saving the team significant time that would otherwise be spent on manual entry. Payments are processed efficiently, which means we no longer need to chase outstanding fees, and the reduction in errors has been noticeable. “

“Overall, the system has streamlined our processes, improved efficiency, and freed up more time for us to focus on supporting applicants and progressing projects. It’s been great to see how quickly these benefits have come through, and we’re really pleased with the progress so far.”

Uttlesford District Council

“Using the Planning Portal Platform is a genuinely positive experience. A high percentage of our applications are submitted through the portal and the officers are finding it very user friendly. The processes are easily to follow and very clear. We certainly see the clear difference and improvements that have been made.”

Stephen Gillespie, Planning System Manager, Lancaster City Council:

“As a Local Planning Authority, Lancaster City Council has been a customer of the Planning portal for over 15 years and have found it invaluable in receiving planning applications, especially regarding the increasing complexity of planning applications over the years with the introduction of additional documents and data requirements.”

“The Planning Portal has now become the primary method we use for receiving planning applications by a significant margin. With the introduction of the ability for customers to submit Building Control applications through the Planning Portal, we have seen a slow increase of applications submitted through the portal. These submissions are far easier both for the customer and ourselves to process with the ability to relate building applications to planning applications.

“…Based on the improvements seen through Planning, we have begun exploring the Planning Portal as the primary route for submitting Building Control applications, alongside further integration with our back-office planning system.

“This will help two-fold, in that the time taken to process Building Control applications will reduce significantly and [we will] hopefully see a positive feedback loop… causing an increase of revenue [with only a minimal increase in] workload…while allowing for further service improvements.”

Supporting better outcomes for councils and customers

From improved application quality to faster validation, and from integrated payments to increased revenue opportunities, we believe the feedback from local authorities speaks for itself, demonstrating that our integrated Building Control Portal is delivering real, tangible value. 

As more councils come onboard and adoption continues to grow, we’ll continue to work closely with local authorities to refine the service, strengthen integrations, and support a smoother, modernised, fully digital Building Control process that works for everyone. 

Not yet onboarded for Building Control?

Find out how your local authority can benefit from the efficiencies of our integrated Building Control Portal, using the same trusted platform you already rely on to support planning – at no additional cost.  

If you would like to learn more, our team would be happy to discuss it with you. Please contact our Building Control Account Management team for more information:

Scott Alford:

Scott.Alford@planningportal.co.uk

Matt Culley:

Matt.culley@planningportal.co.uk

Spiwe Masarira:

Spiwe.Masarira@planningportal.co.uk

More than a Portal

At the Planning Portal we are more than just a submission platform. By reinvesting in our systems, guidance, and integrations, we help councils streamline workflows, reduce manual entry, and improve service for applicants. The impact is clear: faster validation, smoother processes, and better outcomes for councils and communities. We are more than a portal – we are an ecosystem supporting the entire built environment, and we take that role seriously.