79 Cowley Road Oxford Oxfordshire OX4 1HR Data via plota.co.uk

26/01986/CEU - Cert of Lawfulness - Existing Use Registered

Proposal

Application to certify that the existing use as a House in Multiple Occupation (Use Class C4) is lawful development. Data via plota.co.uk

View original council record ↗Last checked

Application progress

Received
14 Aug 2026
Validated
21 Aug 2026
Consultation
27 Aug 2026
Decision
Expected by 16 Oct 2026

This application is under consideration - no decision has been issued yet. A decision is expected by 16 Oct 2026. Comments are open until 26 Sept 2026.

Comment on this application ↗

Site constraints 3

Article 4 direction
Houses in Multiple Occupation Article 4 Direction. Named permitted development rights are withdrawn here.
An Article 4 direction withdraws particular permitted development rights, so work that would normally need no application needs one here. Not every council has published its directions.
Air quality management area: The City of Oxford
The council has declared the area as failing an air quality objective.
Schemes that add traffic, parking or combustion plant are assessed against the area's action plan and may need an air quality assessment.
Council record ↗
Also on the record
Inside the Oxford built-up area.
Not affected
Outside flood zones 2 and 3 · Not green belt · No scheduled monument at the site

Checked on 11 September 2026. Historic England, the Environment Agency, Natural England and council datasets, Open Government Licence. A boundary can run through a site and the council holds the definitive record: confirm with the council before relying on this.

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Important details

Council
Oxford
Application type
Cert of Lawfulness - Existing Use
Postcode
OX4 1HR
Received
14 Aug 2026
Validated
21 Aug 2026
Ward
St Clement's Ward
Case officer
Show
Target decision
16 Oct 2026
Decision level
Delegated decision
Applicant
Show
Agent
C/o Applicant

Public comments

No public comments yet.

1 neighbour consulted · Last counted 10 Sept 2026

Read the comments on the council site ↗

Consultation & key dates

Neighbours
27 Aug 2026
Consultation
27 Aug 2026
Comments by
26 Sept 2026
Site or press notice
3 Sept 2026
Statutory expiry
16 Oct 2026
Env. assessment
No
Oxford
Planning Authority Score
1.8/10
Poor
#277 of 296 councils
Relevant to this application:
Householder decisions

Oxford is slower than most councils at deciding householder applications, ranking #261 out of 296. The council extends the time limit on 57% of applications - one of the highest rates in England. Expect your application to take longer than the standard deadline. Householder applications are slightly less likely to be approved here (89%) than the national average (90%).

Frequently extends decision deadlines
expect longer than the statutory limit
These figures are council-wide context, not a prediction for this application. View full council performance
Oxford decision statistics
Based on MHCLG data, the year to March 2026
88%
Overall approval rate
Above avg (87%) #159 of 296
89%
Householder approved
Below avg (90%) #205 of 296
43%
Decided in 8 weeks
Below avg (63%) #261 of 296
57%
Extended time limit
Above avg (41%) #259 of 296
61%
Minor dwellings approved
64 decided (1-9 homes)
100%
Major dwellings approved
5 decided (10+ homes)
75%
Change of use approved
117 decided
1,150
Total decisions
140 refused in the year to March 2026