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Class BC: temporary recreational campsites
Class BC of Part 4 allows land to be used as a recreational campsite for up to 60 days in total in a calendar year, with no more than 50 pitches and moveable structures reasonably necessary for the campsite.
It is now the main Part 4 route for an ordinary temporary recreational campsite. The right is subject to annual notification, on-site facilities and, in Flood Zones 2 or 3, prior approval.
Need help with permitted development?
Permitted development can avoid a full planning application, but only if the right applies and every relevant limit and condition is met. Planning Geek can check the planning history, Article 4 directions and other restrictions, and help with a lawful development certificate or prior approval where needed.
The 60-day and 50-pitch limits
The 60 days are a total annual allowance. They do not have to be consecutive. The campsite may have no more than 50 pitches and may include moveable structures that are reasonably necessary for the permitted campsite use.
The developer must provide toilet and waste disposal facilities on site for campsite users.
Which caravans are allowed?
Class BC allows tents. Where a caravan is used, it must be a caravan that is itself used as a motor vehicle designed or adapted for human habitation, such as a motorhome or campervan. An ordinary towable touring caravan does not fall within that exception.
Annual notification to the council
Before the campsite starts in each calendar year, the developer must notify the local planning authority in writing. The notice must include a site plan showing the toilet and waste disposal facilities and the dates on which the site will be used.
The local planning authority must pass the notice to the relevant fire and rescue authority where it is a separate body.
Flood Zones 2 and 3 require prior approval
If the campsite is on land within Flood Zone 2 or Flood Zone 3, prior approval is required before the development starts in each calendar year. The application must include a site-specific flood risk assessment with provision for warning and evacuation. The Environment Agency is consulted and the Class BC procedure provides a 56-day determination route.
A prior approval fee applies where prior approval is required. Check the current amount on our planning fees page.
Where Class BC cannot be used
- On a scheduled monument
- In a safety hazard area
- In a military explosives storage area
- On a site of special scientific interest
- On the site of a listed building
Planning permission is not the only control
Class BC deals with planning permission. Separate campsite or caravan-site licensing requirements can still apply. Our Part 5 camping page and caravan planning section explain the other main planning routes.
If prior approval is refused
The annual Class BC notification itself is not a planning application. Where Flood Zone 2 or 3 makes prior approval necessary, the prior approval application carries a fee, shown on our planning fees page. A refusal of prior approval can normally be challenged through the planning appeal process.
Relevant legislation
Class BC of Schedule 2, Part 4 of the GPDO contains the full statutory wording.
Class BC Temporary Recreational Campsites Page Updated: 22nd September 2026