Planning Portal

What Planning Portal does

Planning Portal is a UK government-backed online platform that operates as the national digital channel for submitting planning permission and building control applications across England and Wales. Delivered by PortalPlanQuest Limited — a joint venture between TerraQuest Solutions Limited and the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG) — the service was established in 2002 and is headquartered in Bristol. It serves two primary customer groups: individual homeowners and residential applicants submitting personal projects, and professional users such as planning agents, architects, surveyors, and building control approvers submitting on behalf of clients. Local planning authorities and building control bodies are downstream counterparties that receive and process applications routed through the platform under exclusive partnership arrangements with every local authority in England and Wales.

The core product is a web-based SaaS platform that consolidates the full application lifecycle — permission requirement checking, application form completion, document upload, fee calculation, payment processing, and reference-number tracking — into a single self-serve workflow. Complementary proprietary tools include the Interactive House (animated permitted-development guidance), the Site Boundary and Location Plan Tool (with GeoJSON export/import integration to QGIS and ArcGIS), a fee calculator, downloadable PDF forms for offline application types, and the Planning Market Insight Report, a B2B data product built on the platform's national application dataset. A Welsh-language variant (Planning Portal Cymru) covers Wales with dedicated English- and Cymraeg-language sites.

Planning Portal monetises primarily through per-application transaction fees (£75.83 +VAT on online planning applications where the government fee exceeds £125; £21 including VAT for Wales building control applications), supplemented by commercial advertising (banner, inline, newsletter, sponsored content) targeted at the platform's 1M+ monthly visitors, partner marketplace commissions on third-party specialist services, and B2B licensing of the Market Insight Report. Go-to-market is direct-to-consumer self-serve with organic search, content marketing, and government association as the dominant acquisition channels; the team of 11–50 employees supports operations, service desk, business development, policy, and sales functions from Bristol.

Name

Planning Portal

Legal name

PortalPlanQuest Limited

Website

https://planningportal.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Planning Portal is a UK government-backed online platform that enables direct digital submission of planning permission and building control applications to every local authority in England and Wales, serving homeowners and planning professionals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Planning Application Platform

NAICS

Administration of Urban Planning and Community and Rural Development (925120), Web Search Portals and All Other Information Services (51929)

SIC

Real Estate Agents & Managers (For Others) (6531), Services-To Dwellings & Other Buildings (7340)

akta.pro primary industry

Regional & Land Use Planning (BPAHAKAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

General Web Portals & Start Pages (BPAMAAAA)

Keywords

• Online planning applications
• Building control submissions
• Planning permission software
• Government planning platform
• Regulatory application services

Headquarters

HQ city

Bristol

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Application Service Charges: Planning Portal charges a service fee of £75.83 +VAT on online planning applications where the government planning fee exceeds £125. Building control applications in Wales incur a £21 including VAT service charge. This is the primary revenue stream funding platform operations, customer support, and service development.
2. Advertising Revenue: Commercial advertising opportunities on the Planning Portal website including banner adverts, inline adverts, mobile adverts, mini guide adverts, newsletter adverts, and sponsored content. Revenue generated from businesses seeking to reach homeowners and planning professionals during research and decision-making stages.
3. Partner Marketplace: Specialist service marketplace connecting users with third-party experts to support planning and building projects, potentially generating referral or commission revenue.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Planning Portal operates the national online application service for planning permission and building regulations in England and Wales, enabling users to register, complete application forms, upload supporting documents, calculate fees, and submit applications directly to local planning authorities. The platform is operated by PortalPlanQuest Limited, a joint venture between TerraQuest Solutions Limited and the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government, and works in partnership with every local authority across England and Wales. Additional adjacent services include a paid 30-minute expert planning guidance call, the Interactive House permitted development guidance tool, a Site Boundary and Location Plan Tool, a Market Insight Report for industry data, and a Partner Marketplace.

Product overview

Planning Portal is a government-backed online platform operated as a joint venture between TerraQuest Solutions Ltd and the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG), serving as the national home of planning and building regulations information and the national planning application service in England and Wales since 2002. The core product is the Planning Portal Online Application Service, which enables end-to-end digital submission of planning permission and building control applications, supported by a Welsh-language variant (Planning Portal Cymru). The platform's suite includes complementary tools such as the Site Boundary and Location Plan Tool (with QGIS/ArcGIS geospatial data import), the Planning Guidance Service (paid expert call), the Interactive House (permitted development guidance), the Fee Calculator, and the Application Index/Market Insight Report for industry data. The Partner Marketplace and Advertising services provide commercial third-party extensions, while Downloadable PDF Forms support offline submission. Together, these products form an integrated planning and building control submission ecosystem.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Planning Portal Online Application Service (England) The primary platform enabling registered users to create and submit planning permission and building control applications online to local authorities across England, including payment processing, fee calculation, and document management.
• Planning Portal Wales / Cymru The Welsh-language version of the Planning Portal, allowing online submission of planning and building control applications in Wales, available in Welsh at planningportal.wales and cymraeg.planningportal.wales.
• Planning Guidance Service A 30-minute paid expert call service offering tailored planning advice for home improvements or commercial projects, available to users needing one-to-one guidance.
• Planning Portal Application Index (Market Insight Report) A market data product providing aggregated planning market data and analytics to help businesses identify opportunities and understand trends in planning and building applications.
• Partner Marketplace A directory of specialist third-party services and professionals connected to Planning Portal, helping users find expertise to support their planning and building projects.
• Planning Portal Advertising Commercial advertising opportunities on the Planning Portal, including banner ads, inline ads, mobile ads, mini guide adverts, and newsletter adverts, targeting homeowners and industry professionals.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 1 million visits and 3 million page views per average month
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Planning Portal is delivered by PortalPlanQuest Limited, a joint venture between TerraQuest Solutions Ltd and the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG). MHCLG provides government mandate and oversight, positioning the Portal as the national planning application service for England.
• TerraQuest Solutions LtdcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTerraQuest Solutions Ltd is the parent company and joint venture partner operating the Planning Portal. TerraQuest is described as an award-winning and market-leading specialist provider of planning, land, property, and business solutions. The Bristol-based TerraQuest team develops and maintains the Planning Portal platform.
• Local Planning Authorities (England and Wales)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPlanning Portal works in partnership with every local authority across England and Wales, serving as the national digital channel through which planning and building control applications are submitted and forwarded to the relevant local authority.
• The PlannerminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPlanning Portal's weekly planning news is produced in association with The Planner magazine, a leading UK planning industry publication. This partnership provides authoritative industry news content for Planning Portal users.
• Welsh GovernmentcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWelsh Government sets planning fees for Wales and the Planning Portal operates dedicated Welsh-language (Cymraeg) and English-language services for Welsh local authorities and building control bodies through planningportal.wales.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Northern Ireland Planning Portal: Northern Ireland's online planning service providing digital application submission to local planning authorities. Direct peer offering equivalent functionality to applicants and authorities in another UK jurisdiction.
• ePlanning Scotland: Scotland's national online planning application portal operated by the Scottish Government. Direct functional peer — same core product (online planning submission) in an adjacent UK jurisdiction with parallel transaction-fee economics.

Emerging players

• Hoowla: UK property technology company providing conveyancing and case management software for solicitors and property professionals. Adjacent emerging player touching the same homeowner and property professional audience at a different stage of the transaction lifecycle.
• PlanRadar: European SaaS platform for construction and real estate documentation, task management, and reporting. Emerging player with partial overlap via construction-phase documentation workflows adjacent to building control applications.
• Arken: UK conveyancing practice management software for property lawyers. Emerging player serving an overlapping professional buyer segment (planning agents, solicitors) with a complementary workflow product.

Others

• HM Land Registry: UK government department registering property and land ownership in England and Wales. Ecosystem participant in the broader property transaction workflow that Planning Portal feeds applications into.
• TerraQuest Solutions: Parent company and joint venture partner operating the Planning Portal. Award-winning specialist provider of planning, land, and property solutions; adjacent ecosystem participant rather than direct competitor.

Broad incumbents

• IDOX Group: AIM-listed UK software provider specializing in planning and asset management solutions for local government. Competes indirectly by selling planning application software directly to local authorities that could complement or substitute for the Planning Portal.
• Civica: Large UK public-sector software vendor offering planning, regulatory, and back-office solutions to local authorities. Broad incumbent with overlapping capabilities in planning workflows but serving the B2G buyer rather than the B2C applicant.
• NEC Software Solutions: Public sector software provider (formerly Northgate Public Services) offering planning, housing, and regulatory applications to UK local authorities. Broad incumbent selling parallel back-office and submission tooling into the same council customer base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Planning Portal