Self-build and custom housebuilding

1. What is the purpose of the Self-build and Custom Housebuilding Register?

The Self-build and Custom Housebuilding Act 2015 imposes a duty upon the Council to maintain a register of individuals, and associations of individuals, who are seeking to acquire serviced plots of land in their area in order to build homes for their occupation.

Registering on the Self-build and Custom Housebuilding (SCH) Register helps the Council assess demand for this type of housing locally and inform its work on shaping future policy for the Council to meet the identified need. It also enables more effective matching of permissions for SCH plots with those seeking them.

2. How and why is St Albans City & District Self-build and Custom Housebuilding Register changing?

From 8 July 2024 the Council is updating its Self-build and Custom Housebuilding Register to include a Local Connection Test (LCT) and a fee to cover the costs of administering the Register. The changes aim to promote SCH opportunities and better identify the genuine demand for SCH plots in St Albans District so as to guide the Council’s policies. The changes also aim to provide more effective matching of relevant planning permissions with those on the Register.

The Register will be split into two parts and there will be a fee to enter either Part of the Register for a three year period, of £45 to be on Part 1 or £35 to be on Part 2 of the Register. The Council will provide regular updates with regards SCH permissions to those on Part 1.

Part 2 keeps a record of the general demand for SCH plots and includes individuals / associations that have not met the LCT. 

Although the Council is not required to meet the demand of those on Part 2 of the Register, the Council will have regard to both parts when delivering its planning, housing and land disposal functions.

All new applicants will be required to pay the relevant administration fee for entering the Register. Once the fee is paid, entries will remain on the Register for three calendar years from the date the fee is paid. Applicants will be required to demonstrate they still meet the eligibility criteria to be able to stay on the Register following the expiry of this period. To be entered on Part 1 of the Register, additional eligibility evidence is required. Whether applicants are kept on Part 1 or Part 2 of the Register depends on passing the LCT and paying the applicable fee. 

3. I joined the Council’s Self-build and Custom Housebuilding Register before July 2024, will I be able to remain on the Register?

The new process will require you to re-register your interest in SCH and ensure that the relevant evidence is provided and the applicable fee is paid. If we do not hear from you and / or you do not re-register your interest, provide the required evidence and pay the applicable fee, we will assume that you are no longer interested in SCH opportunities in this District and / or have already found a property / plot, and do not wish to remain on the Register.

4. What are the eligibility criteria for entering the register?

In order to confirm your / association members’ eligibility for inclusion in the Register you must follow the steps below.

To enter Part 2 of the Register, you will need to:

• Be aged 18 or over and:
  o    a UK citizen or
  o    a national of an EEA state or
  o    a citizen of Switzerland; and 
   
• Be seeking (either alone or with others) to acquire a serviced plot of land in St Albans District for your own self-build or custom housebuilding and have paid any fee required to join or remain on the Register.

To be on Part 1 of the Register, you will need to additionally demonstrate that you meet the Local Connection Test (LCT), i.e.:

• You / association members have lived in the District for the past 12 months;
• You / association members are working permanently within the District for a minimum of 16 hours per week;

or

• You are currently serving in the armed forces of the Crown or have left within the last five years from the date of your application.

The Council requires you to provide proof that you meet the above eligibility criteria as part of the application process. Examples of what is considered acceptable evidence to show you meet these requirements are provided in the application form.

You will also be required to pay the fee to enter the Register for 3 years, which is £45 to be on Part 1 of the Register or £35 to be on Part 2 of the Register.

5. What is the difference between Part 1 and Part 2 of the Register? How do I know which one I qualify for?

Those eligible for Part 1 are those who satisfy all the eligibility criteria, including the Local Connection Test (LCT). The Council will regularly update those on Part 1 as to potentially relevant SCH permissions. Updates may include potential SCH permissions granted in previous years, plus information on potential SCH plots available as a result of the Council’s Local Plan site allocations; to provide as comprehensive a service as possible. This is an additional service that is not required of the Council, but which may assist those seeking SCH plots to find potential SCH opportunities.

Those eligible for Part 2 are those who satisfy all eligibility criteria, but not the LCT.

Eligibility for Part 1 or Part 2 of the Register is dependent on submission of the required supporting documentation.

6. What are the Council’s obligations with regards to entries on the Register?

The Council has some legal duties that apply to both parts of the Register, and some that only apply to Part 1.

There is no legal requirement for the Council to provide Self-build and Custom Housebuilding (SCH) opportunities to specific individuals/associations on the Register, however there is a requirement for the Council to permission SCH plots for the numbers of individuals/associations on the Register over a period of time.

Legislation permits us to charge a fee on a cost recovery basis as well as allows us to split the register into two parts. Part 1 are individuals or association members who satisfy all the eligibility criteria, including the Council’s Local Connection Test (LCT). Part 2 are individuals or association members who satisfy the minimum eligibility criteria but do not meet the Council’s LCT.

The Council must have regard to both parts of the Register when carrying out its planning, housing and land disposal functions. This means the Council has a duty to take into account the total number of entries on the Register (i.e. Part 1 and Part 2) when drafting planning policy documents (e.g. The Draft Local Plan to 2041), developing plans or deciding to sell Council land.

The Council must grant sufficient development permissions for serviced plots of land suitable for custom or Self-build projects over a period of time to meet demand from Part 1 of the Register only.

7. How do I apply to enter the Register?

Please complete and return the application form together with the required supporting documentation to selfbuild@stalbans.gov.uk. We will then assess your application and let you know if you are eligible to join the Register within six weeks. You will then be required to pay the required fee to formally join the register for three years, of £45 to be on Part 1 or £35 to be on Part 2 of the Register. You will receive confirmation once the fee is successfully processed.

The application form is available via:

Self-build and Custom Housebuilding Application Form

8. When can I apply to enter the Register? 

You can apply at any time. Once we have verified your eligibility and you’ve paid the required fee, you will be able to enter the Register.

9. What happens to my personal details and copy of personal documentation that I send to the Council as part of my application?

The Council will process your personal details in line with the most up-to-date data protection regulations. Please see the Council’s privacy notice on the SCH home page: https://www.stalbans.gov.uk/self-build-and-custom-housebuilding

Copies of documentation submitted as evidence that you meet the eligibility requirements to enter the register will be stored securely and deleted from Council records when no longer required.

10. How do I pay the administration fee to enter the Register?

Once you have submitted your application form together with the required supporting documentation, we will confirm if you are eligible to enter the Register. If we have considered your application eligible, we will then send you a confirmation email with a link to making the payment.

11. What happens if I am on the Register but don’t send the application form, pay the fee or provide the eligibility evidence, when required?

The application form, fee and eligibility evidence is required in order to remain on the Register. If these are not provided, you will be removed from the Register but not until at least 6 weeks following the initial migration of service / renewal reminder email.

This privacy notice explains how St Albans City & District Council (the Data Controller) will use any personal information we collect about you when you use our services. 

What information do we collect about you?

The information that the Council will collect varies depending on how you use the Council’s Services. We are using the information provided in this case because we have a legal obligation (Art. 6(1)(c)).  This means we collect your personal information from you so that we can carry out a function we are required by law to carry out.  In this case we are collecting personal information for the purposes of providing a service to individuals to help them identify Self-Build and Custom Housebuilding (SCH) opportunities in the District.

You are choosing to provide the personal data – the personal data that you normally provide is your name, address, email address and telephone number. For applying information in regards to the Local Connection Test, you will provide us further data not limited to Council Tax, Utility Bill, Driving Licence and other documents that the Council deems necessary in order for us to establish that you have met the Local Connection Test. This is used to help us prioritise SCH opportunities to people with a local connection and to ensure that the register of the needs for SCH plots that the Council has a duty to meet reflects those who are genuinely seeking to obtain a SCH plot in the District.

When you provide your personal data we will add you to the register, either Part 1 or Part 2 depending on if you pass the Local Connection Test.  You can request for us to remove you from the register if your circumstances have changed and/or you are no longer looking for SCH opportunities. Please contact us at selfbuild@stalbans.gov.uk. This means we will not use your personal data to contact you again

How will we use the information about you?

We use the information to inform the carrying out of our planning, housing and land disposal functions, eg when creating policy documents and assisting plan making and identifying demand for SCH. These may be subject to public consultation. Your personal details will not be available to be viewed by the public, however we may use anonymous data which you have provided in your form to assist us in identifying demand. We will also share your email address with landowners / developers who have obtained planning permission and wish to contact people on the Register, so that they can contact you to advise of potential SCH opportunities.

We may be required to share your personal information with the Police, or similar agency, or another Council for the purposes of preventing and detecting fraud.  We will ensure that all personal information is kept securely.

We will not share the personal information we hold with any other external organisations or individuals.

How long will we keep this information?

We will destroy this personal information in accordance with our Disposal Schedules.  To determine how long we should keep information, we consider what the legislation states and what is good practice. This means we will securely destroy the information once we no longer need it.  If you would like to know the specific period of time that relates to your personal information please contact GDPR@stalbans.gov.uk

Individuals’ Rights

You have a right to request a copy of the personal information that we hold about you.  If you would like a copy of some or all of your information, please contact foi@stalbans.gov.uk and ask for a subject access request.

If you consider we hold inaccurate personal information about you, you can contact us to ask for this information to be corrected.  We will consider your request and respond within one month.  Please contact GDPR@stalbans.gov.uk.

You can find out more about your rights on our website: https://www.stalbans.gov.uk/transparency-and-data-information

Cookies

Cookies are text files placed on your computer to collect standard internet log information and visitor behaviour information.  This information is used to improve your use of the internet. For further information on how we use these and how you can control them, please visit http://www.stalbans.gov.uk/about-this-site/legal-notices/cookies.aspx

Changes to our Data Protection Policy

We have a Data Protection Policy in place and this can be found here: https://www.stalbans.gov.uk/general-data-protection-regulation 

We review this policy annually. 

Data Protection Officer

Our Data Protection Officer for the purposes of Articles 37 to 39 of the General Data Protection Regulation is Judith Adamson, Solicitor - Regulatory Team Leader. She can be contacted by emailing GDPR@stalbans.gov.uk or calling 01727 866100 for our Complaints Team.

How to contact us

Please contact us if you have any questions about our Data Protection Policy, or concerns about how we handle your information: by emailing foi@stalbans.gov.uk or write to us at: FOI Team, St Albans City & District Council, St Peter’s Street, St Albans, AL1 3JE. 

Complaints

You have a right to complain to the Information Commissioner if you are unhappy with how we process your personal information.  You can do so through their website:  https://ico.org.uk/concerns/ or by emailing: casework@ico.org.uk or calling their helpline on 0303 123 1113.

^{Privacy Notice - Planning Policy – Self-Build and Custom Housebuilding Register - July 2024}

Please let us know if you have a site with planning permission that is available for self-build and custom housebuilding plots in the District, and we will notify people on Part 1 of the Register about it.

You can contact the Planning Policy team at selfbuild@stalbans.gov.uk