Use Classes Order

Under ‘the Town and Country Planning Use Classes Order 1987’ the uses of buildings and land are put into a variety of categories known as 'Use Classes'.

The list below outlines the types of uses that fall with in the Use Classes Order.

A1 Shops - Shops, dry cleaners, hairdressers, undertakers, travel and ticket agencies, internet cafes, pet shops, sandwich bars, showrooms, domestic hire shops, funeral directors, retail warehouses and post offices.
A2 Financial and Professional Services - Financial services such as building societies, banks, betting offices, professional services (other than medical services and health) including employment and estate agencies.
A3 Restaurants and Cafés - For the sale of food and drink for consumption on the premises – cafes, snack bars and restaurants.
A4 Drinking Establishments - Wine bars, public houses or other drinking establishments (not night clubs).
A5 Hot Food Takeaways - Sale of hot food to be consumed off the premises.

B1 Business - Light industry appropriate in a residential area, offices (excluding those within A2), research and development.
B2 General Industrial - Use for industrial process (excluding those within B1), (excluding chemical treatment, landfill, incineration purposes, or hazardous waste).
B8 Distribution or Storage - Includes open air storage areas.

C1 Hotels - Hotels, guest houses and boarding (excludes hostels).
C2 Residential institutions - Hospitals, Residential care homes, residential colleges and training centres, boarding schools, nursing homes.
(a) Secure Residential Institution - Use for a provision of secure residential accommodation, including use as a prison, custody centre, short term holding centre, secure local authority accommodation, detention centre, secure training centre, secure hospital and young offenders institution.
C3 Dwelling Houses – Parts (a) (b) (c)
(a): Use by a family or a single person, certain domestic employees such as an au pair, secretary, nanny, nurse, personal assistant governess, chauffeur, gardener, and servant.
(b): Supported housing schemes (people with mental health problems or learning disabilities).
(c): Groups of people (up to six) living together in a single household. This allows for those groupings that do not fall within the C4 HMO definition, but which fell within the previous C3 use class.
C4 Houses in Multiple Occupation - Shared small dwelling house sharing of the basic amenities such as bathroom and kitchen.

D1 Non - Residential Institutions - Law courts, Clinics, health centres, libraries, crèches, day nurseries, schools, art galleries, museums, halls, church halls, day centres and places of worship.
D2 Assembly and Leisure - Skating rinks, music and concert halls, bingo and dance halls (but not night clubs), cinemas, gymnasium, swimming baths or area for indoor or outdoor sports area (excludes where firearms are used or motor sports).

Sui Generis - Some activities will not fall into a certain Class Use, these will be considered as 'sui generis'. Include within this Class Use are: theatres, amusement centres, scrap yards. Petrol station, outlets displaying/selling motor vehicles, retail warehouses, nightclubs, casinos, launderettes, taxi businesses, houses in multiple occupation and hostels.