Hello, farmer, pub owner, hotel operator or rural landowner. Your unused field may support camping. Check the rules first.
In 2026, ordinary temporary camping follows different rules in England and Wales.
- Class BC applies in England
- Class BA applies in Wales
- The old 28-day rule no longer covers ordinary camping in England
- Wales now uses a prior approval process
- Wales also has a 100-metre buffer around protected dwellings
Use this guide before you advertise pitches, accept bookings or buy equipment.
This article explains the main planning rules. Confirm your site position with your Local Planning Authority, licensing team and relevant advisers.
Class BC camping in England
Class BC is the main permitted development right for temporary recreational campsites in England.
It allows you to:
- Use land as a recreational campsite for up to 60 days in one calendar year
- Provide up to 50 pitches
- Provide moveable structures needed for the campsite
You can split the 60 days across the year.
Use weekends, school holidays or one continuous period. Count every day when the campsite is in use.
Keep a day-by-day record.
What Class BC permits
Class BC permits these accommodation types:
| Accommodation | Class BC position |
|---|---|
| Tents | Permitted |
| Bell tents | Usually permitted if temporary and removable |
| Campervans | Permitted |
| Motorhomes | Permitted |
| Motor caravans | Permitted |
| Towed touring caravans | Not permitted |
| Static caravans | Not permitted |
| Mobile homes and park homes | Not permitted |
| Fixed glamping pods | Not normally permitted |
| Permanent cabins or lodges | Not permitted under Class BC alone |
The key point is simple.
Class BC covers tents and motor caravans. It does not cover conventional caravans pulled by a car.
A campervan or motorhome is a motor vehicle designed or adapted for human habitation. A touring caravan is towed. Do not treat both as the same category.
Read the official Class BC legislation.
Facilities under Class BC
You must provide on-site:
- Toilets
- Waste-disposal facilities
- Safe access
- Emergency access
- Suitable pitch layouts
You may use moveable structures that are reasonably necessary for the campsite.
This can include:
- Portable toilets
- Temporary showers
- Moveable waste facilities
- A temporary reception hut
- Temporary washing-up facilities
Remove these structures when the campsite is not operating.
Do not build permanent toilet blocks, fixed access tracks, permanent hardstanding or masonry reception buildings and assume Class BC covers them. Those works may need separate planning permission.
England notification requirements
Notify your Local Planning Authority in writing before the campsite starts in each calendar year.
Submit:
- A site plan
- Your operating dates
- Pitch locations
- Toilet locations
- Waste locations
- Access arrangements
- Emergency access details
The council will pass the notice to the fire and rescue authority where required.
Keep the notice, the plan, proof of delivery and the council’s reply in your compliance file.
If the land is in Flood Zone 2 or 3, Class BC requires prior approval before you start. Submit a flood risk assessment, warning arrangements and evacuation details. Do not open while the application is undecided.
England and the old 28-day rule
The old Class B 28-day rule created confusion.
It is no longer the normal route for ordinary recreational camping in England. Class BC now provides the main 60-day route.
Class B may still apply to certain festival-related camping. Do not use it as a substitute for Class BC for a farm campsite, pub campsite or hotel campsite.
Class BA camping in Wales
Class BA applies to temporary recreational campsites in Wales from 1 September 2026.
It allows:
- Up to 60 days per calendar year outside protected landscapes
- Up to 28 days per calendar year in National Parks, National Landscapes and World Heritage Sites
In 2026, count any camping days already used under the previous rules. They reduce the remaining Class BA allowance.
What Class BA permits
Class BA permits:
- Tents
- Temporary canvas camping structures
- Campervans
- Motorhomes
- Motor caravans
It does not permit:
- Towed touring caravans
- Static caravans
- Mobile homes
- Park homes
- Fixed glamping pods
- Permanent cabins
- Luxury lodges
- Other fixed accommodation structures
A yurt needs care.
A genuinely temporary yurt that can be erected and removed may be treated as a tent. The answer depends on its construction and use.
Do not assume that every yurt qualifies.
Permanent platforms, fixed decking, utility connections, hardstanding or year-round retention can take the structure outside Class BA. Ask the LPA before investing.
The Welsh 100-metre buffer
Class BA cannot be used on land within 100 metres of a protected dwelling.
A protected dwelling means a house or flat occupied by someone who is not the campsite owner or operator.
The only stated exception relates to the use of a private way for access or egress.
Map the buffer before you design the campsite.
Keep these outside the 100-metre zone:
- Tent pitches
- Campervan and motorhome pitches
- Toilets
- Showers
- Waste facilities
- Reception areas
- Guest parking
- Other campsite facilities
Measure from the relevant dwelling. Show the buffer on your site plan.
If the remaining field cannot support safe pitches, vehicle movement and facilities, choose another field. Do not force the layout.
The 100-metre restriction does not disappear because you submit a prior approval application.
Read the Welsh Government guidance on temporary campsites.
The Class BA prior approval process
You must make a new notification each calendar year.
Start with a determination application. Ask the LPA whether prior approval is required.
Include:
- A scaled site plan
- Operating dates
- Pitch locations
- The 100-metre buffer
- Toilet and wastewater arrangements
- Waste-disposal arrangements
- Highway access
- Emergency access
- Parking and turning areas
The LPA should decide within 28 days whether prior approval is required.
If it says approval is not required, follow the submitted plan.
If it requires prior approval, submit the additional information requested. Wait for written approval before opening.
The authority may assess:
- Highway safety
- Traffic movement
- Site access
- Wastewater capacity
- Waste storage
- Pollution risk
- Neighbour impact
- Pitch layout
The current Welsh process has no planning fee. Check the latest position before submitting.
Use the Welsh determination form.
Glamping pods, yurts and fixed structures
Do not call every camping unit a tent.
Class BC and Class BA do not create a general right to run fixed glamping accommodation.
The following usually need separate planning permission:
- Glamping pods
- Shepherd’s huts that remain in place
- Timber cabins
- Luxury lodges
- Geo-domes on fixed bases
- Static caravans
- Permanent yurts
- Fixed decking
- Permanent hot tubs
- Hardstanding
- Permanent service connections
Some structures may fall under separate caravan legislation. That does not mean Class BC or Class BA automatically covers them.
Assess the structure, its foundations, its connections and how long it stays on the land.
Ask the LPA for a site-specific view before you purchase units.
Practical compliance for farm diversification
Use this order.
1. Confirm the location
Check:
- England or Wales
- Flood zone
- National Park or National Landscape status
- World Heritage Site status
- SSSI, SAC, SPA or Ramsar status
- Listed buildings
- Scheduled monuments
- Article 4 Directions
- Nearby protected dwellings
2. Choose the accommodation
Start with tents, campervans and motorhomes if you want to use Class BC or Class BA.
Do not accept towed caravans under these classes.
Do not buy fixed pods before checking planning permission.
3. Draw the site plan
Show every pitch, facility, route and boundary.
For Wales, draw the 100-metre buffer first.
For England, show toilets, waste facilities and operating dates.
4. Check licensing
Permitted development rights do not remove campsite licensing duties.
Check:
- Tent campsite licensing
- Caravan site licensing
- Fire safety
- Insurance
- Waste contracts
- Water supply
- Wastewater management
- Food and hospitality permissions
A planning right is not a complete operating licence.
5. Keep your records
Store:
- Notifications
- Prior approval applications
- Site plans
- LPA correspondence
- Operating-day logs
- Waste collection records
- Facility inspections
- Fire safety checks
- Insurance documents
Open Sky Adventure is an industry-leading authority in licensed camping, land diversification and practical campsite compliance. We help farmers, pubs, hotels and rural landowners plan safe, workable sites.
Read our camping legislation guide, review The Legals and explore how to unlock your land.
Contact Open Sky Adventure before you advertise your site or accept bookings.
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