conservation – Planning Edinburgh

New Planning Guidance

A series of new and revised non-statutory planning guidance to provide additional information on the policies of City Plan 2030 and National Planning Framework 4 is now live.

They were approved by Planning Committee on 10 September 2025 and replace any previous versions of the guidance.

The guidance is provided to assist those considering proposals for development and will be used as a material consideration in the determination of planning applications.

The new guidance is listed below:

Edinburgh Design Guidance – this should be used for the planning and design of new development proposals and for street design.

Guidance for Householders – this is for people considering altering or extending their home, and for professionals involved in the application process.

Guidance for Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas – this is for anyone considering repairing, altering or extending a listed building or an unlisted building in a conservation area.

Student Accommodation Guidance – this is for professionals and developers involved in the provision of purpose-built student accommodation including new build, change of use and conversion.

Developer Contributions and Infrastructure Delivery Guidance – this will be used to assist in assessing planning applications including the provisions to include legal agreements requiring contributions towards delivering infrastructure associated with development.

You can see all our Planning Guidance and Planning Quick Guides here

International Day for Biodiversity May 22nd 2025

This is a very special time to welcome International Biodiversity Day 2025, as Edinburgh celebrates a very important biodiversity anniversary this year. There is a long history of partnership working for biodiversity in the city and this year marks 25 years of the Edinburgh Biodiversity Partnership.

May is a great month to celebrate biodiversity and enjoy spending time in nature, and Edinburgh has some very special places to see nature – all year round!

We are really fortunate to have some amazing wildlife across our city, and this includes fantastic species like otters who have returned to our rivers and burns in recent years.

This month sees the return of Swifts, a bird which comes here just to breed and relies entirely on buildings for nesting sites. However, the nature crisis is well documented and there continue to be declines across all species groups globally and in Scotland. This is due to habitat loss, poor habitat management, pollution, invasive species and disease. Extreme weather caused by our changing climate can also have a negative impact through droughts and flooding. Climate change also makes some of the other threats worse, such as the spread of pests and diseases.

Tackling these challenges and supporting the recovery of nature requires a step change in land use planning and embedding positive effects for biodiversity into new developments.

Integrating nature at the design stage and creating nature positive places is good for health and wellbeing as well as biodiversity. It also supports resilience in the built environment to the impacts of climate change from overheating and extreme rainfall.

Nature rich places in the built environment provides urban cooling and slow down water flows. Our new biodiversity policies in City Plan 2030 are supported by Scottish Government guidance and Nature Scot’s Developing with Nature Guidance, as well as the updated draft Edinburgh Design Guidance.

We want your views on our draft Planning Design Guidance – Consultation closing soon

We are currently updating some of our planning guidance documents and would like to hear your views on the new draft versions.

The online consultation closes next week on 3 April 2025.

Your views will help us finalise the updates to these guidance documents:

Edinburgh Design Guidance – Guidance for design and placemaking in new developments. This is to make sure we have places that work well and create good places to live. (Photo courtesy of 7N Architects, © Leo Paredes Photography).
Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas – Guidance to support works to a listed building or within a conservation area. This is to make sure we look after our historic buildings and places.
Guidance for Householders – Guidance for development undertaken by individual householders. This includes work to existing houses and gardens.

You can view the draft-for-consultation documents here:

Edinburgh Design Guidance

Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas Guidance

Guidance for Householders

You can comment on any or all of them online here.

In response to the National Planning Framework 4, City Plan 2030 and the City Mobility Plan, we have reviewed the guidance documents to make sure they align with the aims and outcomes of the plans.

We have also updated the draft guidance to respond to the climate and nature emergencies. This includes:

Minimising energy used in the construction, maintenance and use of buildings.
Adapting to the changing climate, including sustainable drainage.
Supporting biodiversity and good green space.
Enabling sustainable transport.

Our advice on how we make spaces safer for everyone has also been updated.

All three consultations are open until 3 April 2025.

Calling all historic property owner-occupiers!

Colourful graphic design of historic buildings against a yellow background. Text reads "Giving voice to historic property owners"

As part of our efforts to update the Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas planning guidance, the City of Edinburgh Council is collaborating with the University of Edinburgh to understand how the guidance can be improved to be more practical and accessible.

The University’s project, Giving Voice to Historic Property Owners, is now recruiting focus group and workshop participants. The project is specifically looking for owner-occupiers (you own the home you are living in) of listed buildings and properties in a conservation area in Edinburgh.

You can check here to see if your property is listed or in a conservation area.

It’s important that voices from as many conservation areas are included in this project. Owner-occupiers in the Leith, Southside, Portobello, Inverleith, Morningside areas are especially encouraged to sign up. But all historic property owners are welcome!

Focus group participants will receive a £10 e-gift card and in-person workshops will end with a catered lunch.

Learn more and sign up on the project information page.

Replacing Your Windows

Close up of some traditional Edinburgh tenement windows.

In May 2024 legislation came in that changes the need for planning permission for the replacement of windows in certain circumstances.

If your property is in the World Heritage Site or a listed building then these changes do not affect you and should you continue to apply for planning permission/ listed building consent.

If your property is in a Conservation Area the Permitted Development Rights have changed which means you may be able to alter or replace your windows without requiring planning permission. Alterations to windows to the rear of a property that is not a principal elevation (the elevation of the original dwellinghouse which by virtue of its design or setting, or both, is the principal elevation) or a side elevation that doesn’t face a road do not require planning permission.

Applications for Prior Approval can now be submitted to determine the acceptability of windows on the front/principal elevation and side windows facing a road. This allows the Planning Authority to consider whether the proposed replacements will need planning permission. The prior approval will consider the following matters:

Opening Method
Number of window panes
Orientation of Window Panes
Colour of Window Panes
Dimensions of the Window Frame
Dimensions of the Astragals
Colour of the Window Frame or Astragals

If the proposals significantly alter the character of the original windows, then it is likely that the Prior Approval will be refused and an application for Planning Permission would be required. Further guidance on the acceptability of replacement window can be viewed in our planning guidance on listed buildings and conservation areas .

Applications for Prior Approval must contain a location plan, description of the proposed replacement windows and a fee of £200. Forms can be downloaded at eplanning Scotland and submitted by email to us via planning@edinburgh.gov.uk.

If your property is outwith the World Heritage Site, a Conservation Area or is not a listed building then you do not need planning permission to replace your windows. Check if your building is in a Conservation Area or listed on our website here.

Have a look at our Quick Guide to Windows for more information. Full details on Altering or replacing existing windows is online in Planning circular 1/2024: householder permitted development rights.