# Renovating in a conservation area in Market Harborough

> In a Market Harborough conservation area, most internal work on an unlisted house (rewiring, plastering, kitchens, bathrooms) needs no permission, but cladding, side extensions, many roof extensions and demolition of larger buildings do, and most tree work needs six weeks' notice to Harborough District Council. Article 4 directions can remove further rights for specific properties, so ask the council. If the house is listed, internal changes that affect its character need listed building consent too.

Source: Kuote, Market Harborough trades (https://kuote.co.uk/market-harborough/guides/renovating-in-a-conservation-area-market-harborough/). Updated 2026-11-11.

Renovating in a conservation area in Market Harborough doesn't mean you can't change anything. It means some work that would normally be "permitted development" needs planning permission, trees need advance notice, and if your house is listed, many internal changes need consent too. Most of what happens inside an unlisted house, such as rewiring, new plaster, kitchens and bathrooms, is not affected at all.

This guide sets out what is and isn't controlled, what is specific to Harborough district, and how to check before you or your tradespeople start. It is general guidance, not legal advice. Always confirm with Harborough District Council for your address.

## Is my house in a conservation area?

Harborough District Council looks after more than 60 conservation areas across the district. Locally, these include:

- **Market Harborough**, covering the historic core of the market town. The council describes it as focused on the High Street and The Square, taking in much of the town centre, with extensions along the approach roads. The council's 2001 conservation area statements list it as designated in 1969.
- **Great Bowden**, designated in 1974 with its boundary revised in March 2005. It stretches for more than 1.2km and the council notes Great Bowden was the original settlement in whose parish Market Harborough was laid out.
- **Foxton**, designated in 1975
- **Lubenham**, designated in 1975, which the council describes as a large village in the Welland valley just west of Market Harborough
- **Hallaton**, **Medbourne** and many other villages in the district

The council publishes an online directory of conservation areas with boundary maps. The national planning data service also publishes the boundaries. Check the map for your street, because boundaries don't always follow obvious lines. See our area pages for [Great Bowden](https://kuote.co.uk/market-harborough/areas/great-bowden/), [Lubenham](https://kuote.co.uk/market-harborough/areas/lubenham/), [Foxton](https://kuote.co.uk/market-harborough/areas/foxton/), [Little Bowden](https://kuote.co.uk/market-harborough/areas/little-bowden/), [Hallaton](https://kuote.co.uk/market-harborough/areas/hallaton/) and [Medbourne](https://kuote.co.uk/market-harborough/areas/medbourne/).

## What needs planning permission in a conservation area?

Conservation area status reduces some householder permitted development rights. Typical examples:

- **Cladding** the outside of a house with stone, artificial stone, pebble dash, render, timber, tiles or plastic needs planning permission.
- **Side extensions** are not permitted development in a conservation area.
- **Dormer windows and roof extensions** are restricted. Rules vary by roof slope, so check before designing a loft conversion.
- **Demolition**: knocking down most or all of an unlisted building over 115 cubic metres (measured externally) needs planning permission. Some walls, gates and fences are also covered.
- **Larger rear extensions** have tighter limits than outside conservation areas.

Things that usually **don't** need permission in an unlisted house, conservation area or not:

- Internal work: rewiring, plumbing, replastering, new kitchens and bathrooms, internal doors, fitted wardrobes
- Like-for-like repairs using matching materials
- Redecorating inside

Conservation area status on its own doesn't usually stop you replacing windows on a house. An Article 4 direction can, which is the next thing to check.

## Article 4 directions in Harborough

An Article 4 direction removes specific permitted development rights for a particular area, building or piece of land, so work that would normally be allowed needs planning permission. The council explains on its permitted development page that where an area-wide restriction applies, it takes the form of an Article 4 direction.

A local example: in May 2020 the council served an Immediate Article 4 direction on land at Queen's Street, Little Bowden. It means planning permission is needed for things like putting up a gate, fence or wall there, which wouldn't usually need permission.

Article 4 directions elsewhere often cover windows, doors, roofs, porches, boundary walls and painting the outside of a house. We have not found a single published list of every direction in the district, so **ask the council directly whether any Article 4 direction applies to your property** before ordering windows, doors or a new front boundary. Previous planning permissions can also carry conditions that remove permitted development rights on that specific house.

## Trees in a conservation area

Most work to trees in a conservation area, including felling and significant pruning, needs **six weeks' written notice** to the council (a section 211 notice). This gives the council time to decide whether to protect the tree with a Tree Preservation Order. If it doesn't make an order, you can go ahead once the six weeks are up, as long as the work is done within two years of the notice. The council's tree page lists the exceptions. Trees already covered by a Tree Preservation Order need a full application.

## Listed buildings: a different, stricter regime

If your house is listed, the rules are much tighter, and they apply inside as well as out.

- **Listed building consent** is needed for any works that affect the building's special architectural or historic interest. The law doesn't distinguish between internal and external works.
- Examples that can need consent: removing or altering fireplaces, panelling, staircases, historic plasterwork, original doors and joinery, and changing windows.
- **Carrying out unauthorised work to a listed building is a criminal offence**, according to Historic England. Problems can also surface when you come to sell.

Harborough District Council's listed buildings page says it cannot offer specific heritage advice, so if you need advice before applying for consent you may need a heritage consultant. You can check whether a building is listed on the National Heritage List for England, run by Historic England.

## Materials: what the council encourages

Harborough's Development Management guidance notes that in conservation areas natural materials are best, with real slate or clay tiles encouraged for roofs and good brick for walls. It also describes the district's traditional materials: ironstone mainly in the east, brick increasingly to the west. In older solid-walled houses this has knock-on effects inside too. For example, lime plaster is often better than gypsum on old walls. See [lime plaster for old houses in Leicestershire](https://kuote.co.uk/market-harborough/guides/lime-plaster-old-houses/) and [hanging doors in old houses](https://kuote.co.uk/market-harborough/guides/hanging-doors-in-old-houses/).

## Building Regulations still apply

Planning and listed building consent are separate from Building Regulations. Electrical work still falls under Part P (use an electrician registered with a competent person scheme such as NICEIC, NAPIT, ELECSA or Stroma), and any gas work must be done by a Gas Safe registered engineer. Structural changes, new windows and many extensions also need Building Regulations approval. See [how to check an electrician is registered](https://kuote.co.uk/market-harborough/guides/how-to-check-an-electrician-is-registered/) and [plumber or gas engineer](https://kuote.co.uk/market-harborough/guides/plumber-or-gas-engineer/).

## A simple checklist before you start

1. Check the council's conservation area map for your address.
2. Check whether the building is listed on the National Heritage List for England.
3. Ask the council whether any Article 4 direction or planning condition applies.
4. For trees, give six weeks' notice before work.
5. For anything external or structural, consider pre-application advice from the council.
6. Brief your tradespeople. Tell them it is a conservation area or listed building before they quote.
7. Keep any permissions and drawings for when you sell.

## How we can help

When we renovated our house, we found that sorting out what needed permission early saved a lot of stress later. We can't give planning advice, but we can put you in touch with the tradespeople we trust, who are used to working in older Market Harborough houses. We're not paid for recommendations. We just pass you to people we trust. See the [order of trades in a renovation](https://kuote.co.uk/market-harborough/guides/renovation-order-of-trades/), [how to get good quotes](https://kuote.co.uk/market-harborough/guides/how-to-get-quotes-from-tradespeople/), or browse our [carpenters](https://kuote.co.uk/market-harborough/carpenters/) and [plasterers](https://kuote.co.uk/market-harborough/plasterers/).

Message us on WhatsApp: https://kuote.co.uk/market-harborough/go/any

## Frequently asked questions

### Do I need planning permission in a conservation area in Harborough?

For some things, yes. In a conservation area, cladding the outside of a house, side extensions, many roof extensions and dormers, and demolishing most of a building over 115 cubic metres need planning permission. Internal work on an unlisted house, such as rewiring, plastering, kitchens and bathrooms, generally doesn't. Article 4 directions can remove further rights, so check with Harborough District Council for your address.

### Can I replace my windows in a conservation area?

Conservation area status alone doesn't usually stop you replacing windows on a house, but an Article 4 direction or a condition on an earlier planning permission can. If the house is listed, changing windows will almost always need listed building consent. Before ordering replacement windows or doors, ask Harborough District Council whether any restriction applies to your property.

### Do I need permission to cut down a tree in a conservation area?

Usually you must give Harborough District Council six weeks' written notice before felling or significantly pruning a tree in a conservation area. This is called a section 211 notice. If the council doesn't make a Tree Preservation Order in that time, you can go ahead, provided the work is done within two years. Trees already under a Tree Preservation Order need a full application.

### What works need listed building consent?

Any works that affect a listed building's special architectural or historic interest, inside or out. That can include removing fireplaces, panelling, staircases, historic plaster, original doors or joinery, and altering windows. Like-for-like repairs may not need consent, but check first, because Historic England warns that carrying out unauthorised works to a listed building is a criminal offence.

### How do I find out if my house is in a conservation area?

Harborough District Council publishes an online directory of its conservation areas with boundary maps, and the national planning data service also shows boundaries. Market Harborough's own conservation area covers the historic town centre, and villages such as Great Bowden, Lubenham and Foxton have their own. If your house is on a boundary, contact the council's planning team to confirm.

### What is an Article 4 direction?

An Article 4 direction is an order from the council that removes specific permitted development rights for an area, building or piece of land, so work that would normally be allowed needs planning permission. For example, in 2020 Harborough District Council served one on land at Queen's Street, Little Bowden, covering gates, fences and walls. Ask the council if any direction affects your property.

## Sources

- [Harborough District Council: Conservation areas](https://www.harborough.gov.uk/info/20003/conservation/14/conservation_areas)
- [Harborough District Council: Conservation areas in Harborough district (directory)](https://www.harborough.gov.uk/directory/20/conservation_areas_in_harborough_district)
- [Harborough District Council: Market Harborough Conservation Area](https://www.harborough.gov.uk/directory_record/1276/market_harborough_conservation_area)
- [Harborough District Council: Great Bowden Conservation Area](https://www.harborough.gov.uk/directory_record/1257/great_bowden_conservation_area)
- [Harborough District Council: Great Bowden Conservation Area map](https://www.harborough.gov.uk/download/downloads/id/1628/great_bowden_conservation_area_mappdf.pdf)
- [Harborough District Council: Foxton Conservation Area](https://www.harborough.gov.uk/directory_record/1255/foxton_conservation_area)
- [Harborough District Council: Lubenham Conservation Area](https://www.harborough.gov.uk/directory_record/1274/lubenham_conservation_area)
- [Harborough District Council: Conservation area statements (2001)](https://www.harborough.gov.uk/download/downloads/id/10/conservation_area_-_informationpdf.pdf)
- [Harborough District Council: Market Harborough settlement profile](https://www.harborough.gov.uk/download/downloads/id/1370/market_harborough_profile_05_15.pdf)
- [Harborough District Council: Permitted development](https://www.harborough.gov.uk/permitted-development)
- [Harborough District Council: Action taken to protect land in Little Bowden (Article 4)](https://www.harborough.gov.uk/news/article/1308/action_taken_to_protect_land_in_little_bowden)
- [Harborough District Council: Carrying out work on trees](https://www.harborough.gov.uk/info/20003/conservation/12/carrying_out_work_on_trees)
- [Harborough District Council: Listed buildings](https://www.harborough.gov.uk/info/20003/conservation/15/listed_buildings)
- [Harborough District Council: Pre-application advice](https://www.harborough.gov.uk/a_to_z/service/371/pre-application_advice)
- [Harborough District Council: Development Management SPD](https://harborough.oc2.uk/document/29/2753)
- [Historic England: Listed building consent](https://historicengland.org.uk/advice/hpg/consent/lbc)
- [Blaby District Council: Advice on planning controls in conservation areas](https://blaby.gov.uk/media/nbdn2quo/advice-on-planning-controls-in-conservation-areas.pdf)
- [Legislation.gov.uk: General Permitted Development Order 2015, article 4](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2015/596/article/4/made)
- [Planning Portal: Permitted development rights](https://www.planningportal.co.uk/permission/responsibilities/planning-permission/permitted-development-rights/)