Council Pre-App Checklist.
An app idea for architecture firms.
A council-specific checklist and document pack builder that tells architects exactly what each local authority needs for a pre-application or planning submission, updated when rules change.
What the search found
- Who pays
- Architect or small practice owner who submits planning applications
- The problem
- In the buyer's words: 'Anyone else had a permit application delayed or rejected just because the reviewer couldn't find the info they needed?' and 'It depends entirely upon the building department / agency you're submitting plans to.' Every council wants different documents, forms and drawings, and the rules change without notice.
- The gap
- Existing tools are generic. Document management software for architects organises files but does not know what a specific council requires. GOV.UK gives national guidance, not per-council checklists. Proposal and practice management tools do not cover submission packs. Nobody has built a maintained, council-by-council
- Already out there
- PlanMan planman.app
Lists document management software for UK architects. Organises documents but does not encode what each council requires for a submission.
- GOV.UK Making an application gov.uk
National guidance on what a planning application is. Does not give council-specific document lists or a pack builder.
- MHCLG Digital blog mhclgdigital.blog.gov.uk
Government post arguing planning applications should be treated as data. Shows the problem is known but no product for architects exists.
- PlanMan planman.app
- People asking for it
- Permits rejected for poor organization reddit.com
Architect asks if others have had a permit delayed or rejected because the reviewer could not find the information.
- Submitting plans for city approval reddit.com
Comment says it depends entirely on the building department or agency you are submitting to, and to check their permit requirements.
- Building Submission Hell reddit.com
Thread about the pain of building submissions and dealing with local officials.
- Permits rejected for poor organization reddit.com
- The big assumption
- That councils' requirements change often enough and differ enough that architects will pay a subscription rather than keep their own notes and PDFs.
- Test it this week
- Pick 5 councils where the founder has contacts. Build a manual checklist for each in a spreadsheet. Ask 10 architects who submit there whether the checklist matches their experience and whether they would pay for it kept up to date. Count how many say yes and how many already have their own version.
Check your own market first.
This idea was checked for architecture firms in general. Your city, your contacts and your buyers change what is open. Run the free search to see the gaps that fit you, or book a call to talk it through.
More ideas for architecture firms
From the same search. See the full report, including the ideas we dropped because they already exist.
- Gap found
Architect Fee Proposal Builder
A tool that helps small practice owners build staged fee proposals with scope boundaries and exclusions from their own past projects, so they stop undercharging and scope creep is easier to manage.