Class MA is the permitted development right that turns offices, shops and other commercial premises into homes without a full planning application. In London it is used for everything from a single unit above a shop in Croydon to a whole 1980s office block in Ealing. The right is generous on paper, but it comes with conditions, tests and geographic exclusions that decide whether a building is viable before you exchange contracts. This guide covers the rules as set out in the Order, what the prior approval assesses, and how we prepare a submission.
What is Class MA?
Class MA sits in Part 3 of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015. It allows a building in Class E (commercial, business and service: offices, shops, restaurants, gyms, clinics, nurseries) to change to Class C3 dwellinghouses. Because it is permitted development, the council cannot refuse on general planning-policy grounds such as loss of employment floorspace or housing mix; it can only assess the specific matters the Order lists, through a prior approval application.
Class MA replaced the older Class O (office to residential) in 2021 and widened it to the whole of Class E. It has been amended since, most recently in 2024, so the thresholds below should be verified against the current Order before you commit to a purchase.
Which buildings qualify?
| Condition | Requirement (verify current rules; they changed in 2024) |
|---|---|
| Existing use | Class E, or a use that became Class E when the use classes changed in September 2020 |
| Length of use | In Class E for a continuous period of at least 2 years before the application |
| Vacancy | Vacant for at least 3 months immediately before the application |
| Floorspace | Up to 1,500 m² of floorspace changing use |
| Protected land | Not in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty or National Park; not a listed building or within its curtilage; not a scheduled monument |
| Conservation areas | Allowed, but the council also considers the impact of losing ground-floor commercial use |
| Article 4 directions | Where in force, the right is removed and full planning is needed |
Two of these catch London buildings regularly. The first is the use history: a building that was in Class B1(a) offices before 2020 counts as Class E, but one that spent the last two years as a sui generis use (a nightclub, for example) does not. The second is Article 4, covered below.
What does prior approval assess?
The council can only consider the matters the Order lists. For Class MA these are:
- Transport and highways impacts, particularly parking, servicing and access.
- Contamination risks on the site, usually addressed with a Phase 1 desk study.
- Flooding risks, with a flood risk assessment where the site is in Flood Zone 2 or 3 or has surface-water risk.
- Noise from surrounding commercial premises affecting future residents, addressed with a noise impact assessment.
- Natural light to every habitable room. A bedroom or living room with no window fails.
- Adequate space standards. Each new home must meet the nationally described space standard, for example 39 m² for a one-bedroom, one-person flat with a bath and 50 m² for a one-bedroom, two-person flat.
- Impact on the character or sustainability of a conservation area where a ground floor changes use.
- Loss of nursery or health-centre provision where the building was last used for those purposes.
- Fire safety, for taller buildings where the Order requires it.
If a scheme fails any one of these, the council can refuse. If it passes all of them, the council cannot refuse for any other reason.
Where is Class MA removed in London?
Article 4 directions. Several central London boroughs have made directions removing Class MA in defined areas, typically the Central Activities Zone, designated town centres and strategic employment locations, to protect office and retail floorspace. Westminster, Camden, Islington and Tower Hamlets are among the boroughs with directions in force; Southwark, Lambeth, Hackney and Kensington and Chelsea have also used the power in parts of their area. Coverage is not uniform, the boundaries follow policy designations rather than borough lines, and directions are added and amended.
The only reliable check is the council’s constraints map and the published direction with its plan. We do this as the first step of any Class MA feasibility study, because a building that looks ideal on paper may sit fifty metres inside an Article 4 boundary and need a full planning application with an employment-loss justification instead.
How much does Class MA prior approval cost and how long does it take?
| Item | Figure |
|---|---|
| Council fee (England, from 1 April 2025) | £250 per dwellinghouse; verify before applying |
| Statutory decision period | 56 days from receipt |
| Magna Studio feasibility study | Fixed fee quoted within 24 hours of enquiry |
| Magna Studio measured survey | Booked within 1 week |
| Magna Studio prior approval drawings | 2–3 weeks after survey, submitted within 2 working days of sign-off |
| Building Regulations package | 3–5 weeks |
Our fee for a Class MA project is quoted per building rather than from the householder bands, because the number of units, the survey scope and the reports vary widely. It excludes VAT, the council fee, consultants’ reports (noise, daylight, contamination, flood, transport), structural engineering and building control.
What drawings and reports does a Class MA application need?
- Evidence of Class E use and vacancy: leases, business-rates records, marketing history and dated photographs.
- Site location plan and existing floor plans showing the floorspace changing use.
- Proposed floor plans with a unit schedule listing bedrooms, occupancy and gross internal area against the space standard.
- Daylight assessment demonstrating natural light to each habitable room.
- Noise impact assessment where there are commercial neighbours, plant or a busy road.
- Contamination Phase 1 desk study, and Phase 2 investigation if it flags risk.
- Flood risk assessment where the Environment Agency maps or the borough’s strategic assessment require it.
- Transport statement covering parking, cycle storage and refuse.
- Heritage note where the building is in a conservation area.
What about Building Regulations and space standards?
Converting a building to homes is a material change of use under the Building Regulations, which means the whole building must be brought up to the standards for fire safety, sound insulation between dwellings, energy performance, ventilation and access. Concrete-framed offices with deep floorplates in Croydon or Tower Hamlets often need new risers, protected corridors and mechanical ventilation, and single-aspect units at the back of a deep plan are where daylight and space-standard failures cluster. Our Building Regulations package takes 3–5 weeks and is coordinated with the structural, fire and services engineers.
Related services
- Commercial to residential (Class MA): feasibility, prior approval drawings and submission.
- Feasibility studies and pre-application: unit counts, constraint checks and officer engagement before you buy.
- Building Regulations drawings: conversion packages for fire, sound and energy compliance.
- Planning documentation: plans, schedules and supporting statements.
- Borough guides: Westminster and Croydon.
- Get an instant estimate for a Class MA feasibility study.
