Site plan in the United Kingdom

Can you draw it yourself in the UK? #

Yes. No architect or surveyor is legally required for either drawing. The two plans are obtained in quite different ways, though:

• The location plan needs no drawing tool at all. You drag your red site boundary in the Planning Portal and it outputs a compliant OS-based plan for free.
• The site or block plan does have to be drawn. It shows your proposal — the new or altered building, dimensions and distances to the boundaries — and nobody can generate that for you from map data alone.

Local planning authorities set additional local validation requirements, so check your LPA's list.

Create your site plan right here on the website in a few steps #

Drawblueprint is a simple tool for producing the scaled site or block plan.

1. Upload map data — Upload your OS-based site plan extract as a PDF or PNG.
2. Fill in the details — Your drawing details appear in a correct title block.
3. Draw what you need — Boundaries, existing and proposed buildings, dimensions.
4. Export a finished drawing — Download a PDF ready to submit.

What the UK requires #

Two separate plans are used:

• Location plan — context, typically at 1:1250 or 1:2500. Shows the application site outlined in red, and any other adjoining land in the applicant's control outlined in blue.
• Site plan (block plan) — the proposal itself, typically at 1:100, 1:200 or 1:500.

Both must be based on up-to-date Ordnance Survey mapping; OS MasterMap is the approved dataset for planning applications. The mapping you use must show the Crown copyright notice and a licence number. It must not be a Land Registry document, a photocopy or a screen grab.

Where to get the base map #

For the location plan, you can generate a compliant OS plan for free directly inside the Planning Portal by drawing your site boundary in its integrated online service. There is no need to buy one from an external provider, and no need for any other software.

For the site plan, the OS base can be bought from the Portal's accredited supplier (ReQuestaPlan) or another OS-licensed provider. Note what you get: an extract of the OS base showing the plot and the buildings that already exist. It is a starting point, not a finished site plan — your proposal, its dimensions and the distances to each boundary still have to be drawn on top, to scale.

Northern Ireland uses OSNI and a separate planning system.

How to submit #

Applications go through the Planning Portal, the official online service, and are then determined by your local planning authority.

Drawblueprint.com — draw simple building documents yourself #

Use the Planning Portal for your location plan — it is free and nothing here improves on it. Drawblueprint is for the other drawing: the site or block plan, where you have to put your proposal onto the OS base at 1:100, 1:200 or 1:500. It is easier to use than CAD and more capable than general drawing programs: correct scale, a proper title block and dimensioned distances to boundaries.

Go to https://app.drawblueprint.com/sign-up to get started. Drawblueprint is free to try.

Read more about site plans.