Planning Objection Letter: A Full Example and Free Template

Example objection letter

This example uses a fictional application, address and council. It follows the same structure our letters use: one ground per section, strongest first, each backed by a fact from the application, the harm it causes, and the policy it conflicts with.

Planning Department
Anytown Borough Council

27 October 2026

Dear Sir or Madam,

Objection to planning application AB/26/01234/HH - Two-storey rear extension and rear dormer, 12 Example Road, Anytown AN1 2BC

I live at 14 Example Road, the attached house immediately to the east of the application site, and I write to object to this application.

1. Loss of privacy from the proposed rear dormer

The proposed dormer contains a full-height window serving a new bedroom, set 9 metres from the rear boundary and facing directly into the private garden and two rear bedroom windows of my home. At present there is no first- or second-floor window on this elevation. The development plan and national policy both require new development to provide a high standard of amenity for existing residents. A clear-glazed, outward-facing window at this height and distance would create direct overlooking of habitable rooms and the most private part of my garden, a harm the application does not mitigate through obscure glazing, a high-level sill or a reduced opening.

2. Loss of daylight to my kitchen window

The two-storey extension would project 4 metres along the shared boundary. On the submitted ground floor plan, a line drawn at 45 degrees from the centre of my kitchen window, the only window serving that room, is crossed by the extension's flank wall. The applicant has submitted no daylight assessment. On the drawings provided, the extension would cause a material loss of daylight to a habitable room, contrary to the council's adopted residential design guidance and to national policy on safeguarding the living conditions of neighbouring occupiers.

3. Overbearing impact on my garden

The extension's 6-metre-high flank wall would sit on the boundary for its full 4-metre depth, enclosing the patio area closest to my home. Its height, length and position together would have an overbearing and enclosing effect on the usable part of my garden.

Conclusion

Taken individually, each of these harms is significant. Together they would cause unacceptable harm to the living conditions of my household. I respectfully ask the council to refuse the application. If the council is minded to approve it, I ask that the dormer window be obscure-glazed and fixed shut below 1.7 metres above floor level, and that the extension's depth be reduced so that it no longer breaches the 45-degree line from my kitchen window.

Yours faithfully,

A. Resident
14 Example Road
Anytown AN1 2BC

What else comes in the objection pack

A Planning Defender pack is more than the letter. For the example above, it would also include:

Where and how to submit

The council’s own online comment route or planning email for your authority, taken from our verified council directory, with a reminder to quote the application reference and include your name and address.

Ways to strengthen your case

• Add a photo taken from your kitchen window towards the site, so the officer can see the outlook the 45-degree line protects
• Measure the distance from the proposed dormer to your rear bedroom windows and add it to ground 1
• Check whether the council has an adopted householder design guide and, if so, name its separation-distance standard in ground 1

These notes are only shown to you, never sent to the council, so the letter itself stays confident and ready to send.

Free template

Copy this structure and replace the bracketed text, or download it to fill in. Keep each ground to the facts, the harm and the policy.

[Council name] Planning Department

[Date]

Dear Sir or Madam,

Objection to planning application [reference] - [description of the proposal], [site address]

I live at [your address], [how your home relates to the site: next door, opposite, behind], and I write to object to this application.

1. [Your strongest ground, e.g. loss of privacy]
[What the proposal is, with a measurement or drawing reference.]
[What harm it would cause to you specifically.]
[Which policy it conflicts with: name the local plan or national policy document.]

2. [Your second ground]
[Same structure: fact, harm, policy.]

Conclusion
[Ask the council to refuse. If you can, add what would reduce the harm if it is approved, e.g. obscure glazing or a reduced depth.]

Yours faithfully,

[Full name]
[Full address]

Want this done for your application?

The template gives you the structure. The hard part is reading the plans, working out which grounds carry weight and naming the right policy. Tell us your council and the application reference and we’ll fetch the application where we can, read it, suggest the grounds that apply, and draft your letter with submission guidance for your council and ways to strengthen it, for £4.99. You see a summary of the application before you pay.