Which Article 4 geography is described?
The national Planning Data API lists 2023 Article 4 Direction as mapped area 7010010045, with local reference A4D16. Its representative point is at approximately 50.73237°N, 3.52762°W (WGS84). This point is a navigation aid, not the mapped boundary or a particular building.
planning permission is required to change a house to an HMO
Published government area description
Source notes: The 2023 Article 4 Direction replaces an earlier Article 4 Direction that was established in 2010 and updated in 2014.
| Area entity | 7010010045 |
|---|---|
| Area reference | A4D16 |
| Originating organisation identifier | 136 |
| Representative longitude / latitude | -3.527616 / 50.732373 |
| Area start-date field | 2024-12-23 |
| Area end-date field | Not provided; this does not establish current operation |
| Last government record entry | 2026-05-08 |
| Linked HMO-related direction | #6103384 — A4D16 |
Check the location and actual boundary
Explore the representative point on OpenStreetMap ↗. This is intentionally not a building-level boundary check. Open the government record below to inspect the underlying polygon geometry; planning officers should confirm the authoritative mapped area and any amendments before investment or conversion decisions.
- Inspect the exact government's polygon and source fields ↗
- Examine associated direction A4D16 and published dates →
- Read the direction document linked by the local authority ↗
- Read supporting council documentation ↗
Its related planning instrument
The same source organisation's direction 2023 Article 4 Direction (#6103384) carries local reference A4D16. The instrument dataset supplies a start date of 2024-12-23. This link does not establish that the direction currently applies to a specific property.
Practical next checks for a prospective HMO
- Determine the property's complete address, building footprint and current lawful use; never substitute this area centroid for the property's coordinates.
- Read the government's full polygon and the signed local direction, including permitted-development rights withdrawn, commencement, modification, exceptions and any expiry.
- Compare the local authority document linked above against the property site plan.
- Check HMO licensing independently. A planning Article 4 direction neither grants nor replaces an HMO licence, and a licence cannot establish planning permission.
HMO Article 4 explained → · Indicative property checker → · All API evidence pages →
Source: Planning Data Article 4 direction-area dataset, Open Government Licence v3.0, © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Source collection: 2026-10-16.