Meta description: Learn how planners measure the 100m buffer for Class BA camping in Wales, prepare a stronger prior approval application, and compare the English Class BC route.
Welcome.
If you plan a campsite in Wales, measure the site before you design it.
The 100m buffer can decide whether your permitted development rights work.
Do not measure from the gate.
Do not measure from the field centre.
Do not rely on what the next field appears to show.
Measure the proposed camping area from the nearest protected dwelling, prepare the right plan, then submit complete information.
What the 100m buffer means under Class BA in Wales
From 1 September 2026, Wales moved temporary tent camping from Class B to new Class BA rights.
Class BA allows:
- Up to 60 days of camping each calendar year on most land.
- Up to 28 days in National Parks, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and World Heritage Sites.
- Moveable structures that are reasonably necessary for the campsite.
The rules appear in the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Amendment) (Wales) Order 2026.
Class BA does not permit camping:
- Within 100m of a protected dwelling, except for an existing private way.
- On a scheduled monument.
- On a listed building site.
- In Flood Zone 2 or 3.
- On an SSSI, SAC, SPA or Ramsar site.
- In certain safety and military areas.
- Where permitted development rights have been removed.
A protected dwelling means a house or flat occupied by someone other than the campsite owner or operator.
Your own farmhouse may not be a protected dwelling.
Your neighbour’s house usually will be.
What planners measure from
The final Welsh wording refers to land within 100m of a protected dwelling.
It does not state that the measurement starts at the curtilage boundary.
That matters.
A curtilage is the land around a building. It may include a garden, yard, driveway or outbuilding. Under the final Class BA wording, the 100m rule is not expressed as 100m from the whole curtilage.
The practical starting point is the dwelling itself.
Use the closest identifiable part of the dwelling building. Treat the measurement as a straight-line distance to the closest part of the proposed camping land.
Do not assume that the settlement boundary changes the test.
A dwelling at the edge of a village still counts.
A dwelling across a field boundary still counts.
Several dwellings may create overlapping 100m areas.
The legislation does not set out a detailed surveying formula. If the distance is close, ask the local planning authority how it will assess the site. Get that view in writing where possible, but do not treat informal advice as a formal planning decision.
How to measure the 100m zone correctly
Use this process.
1. Define the camping area
Draw the full area you want to use.
Include:
- Tent pitches.
- Internal walking routes.
- Temporary toilet areas.
- Waste facilities.
- Reception or check-in space.
- Any area used by campers.
Do not draw only the pitch centres.
If any part of the proposed campsite land falls within the 100m area, Class BA cannot cover that part.
2. Identify every nearby dwelling
Check the whole site.
Look beyond your field.
Check neighbouring farms, cottages, village edges and isolated houses.
Record the location of each protected dwelling.
Do not rely on visual judgement. A hedge may hide a building. A building may sit behind another field. A nearby property may fall outside your first site check.
3. Measure the shortest straight-line distance
Measure from the nearest part of the dwelling to the nearest part of the proposed camping area.
Use a horizontal plan measurement.
Do not measure:
- From the site entrance.
- From the access gate.
- From the field centre.
- Along a footpath.
- Along the road.
- By walking distance.
- From the nearest settlement sign.
For an irregular field, measure the closest point on the campsite polygon.
This is why a large field can fail while a smaller area within the same field works.
4. Show the result on a scaled plan
Use an accurate Ordnance Survey-based plan.
Add:
- A north arrow.
- A scale bar.
- The site boundary.
- Each nearby dwelling.
- The proposed camping area.
- A clear 100m radius overlay.
- The shortest measured distance.
- Access and private ways.
- Pitches and facilities.
Use a block plan for detail.
Use a location plan to show the wider setting.
Add a short measurement schedule. List each dwelling, its reference number and the measured distance to the nearest part of your proposed camping area.
This gives the planner something clear to check.
Why the next field is not a defence
You may see a campsite in a neighbouring field.
That does not prove your site qualifies.
The other operator may have:
- Full planning permission.
- A different site boundary.
- A different dwelling relationship.
- An older consent.
- An exemption certificate.
- A planning condition.
- A different measurement method.
- A lawful use established before the new rules.
Planning decisions apply to specific land.
Boundary disputes can also create problems. Your title plan, fencing and planning red line may not match. Resolve the boundary before submitting the notification.
If the 100m distance is 98m on one plan and 104m on another, expect questions.
Move the camping area.
Commission a measured survey.
Or request written clarification from the planning authority.
What to do if your land falls inside the buffer
You still have options.
Shrink the usable area
Remove the part inside the 100m zone.
Keep all pitches outside it.
Show the excluded land clearly on the block plan.
Do not use the excluded area for guest facilities unless it is an existing private way covered by the rules.
Reposition the pitches
Move pitches towards the centre or far side of the field.
Keep toilets, waste facilities and guest routes within the compliant area.
Check the new layout against access, drainage and emergency arrangements.
Use screening for the right purpose
Trees, hedges and existing buildings can reduce views, noise and landscape impact.
They do not remove the legal 100m restriction.
Screening is mitigation.
It is not a substitute for distance.
Do not submit a plan that places pitches inside the buffer and argue that planting will make them acceptable.
Build a prior approval application that survives scrutiny
Class BA starts with a notification to the local planning authority.
You must ask whether prior approval is required before camping begins.
Submit a complete package.
Include:
- A site location plan.
- A scaled block plan.
- The 100m radius overlay.
- The exact camping area.
- Pitch locations.
- Toilet and wastewater details.
- Waste storage and collection details.
- Highway access details.
- Parking arrangements.
- Proposed operating dates.
- A short site management statement.
- Heritage information where relevant.
- Flood and drainage information where relevant.
- A noise and traffic statement where the site could affect neighbours or the highway.
The formal prior approval matters under Class BA are:
- Toilet and wastewater arrangements.
- Waste disposal arrangements.
- Vehicular access.
The authority can request reasonable information.
Traffic is especially important. If the proposal could create a material increase or material change in traffic, prior approval will be required for access and highway impacts.
Noise may not be a separate Class BA prior approval matter, but you should still explain:
- Quiet hours.
- Guest numbers.
- Vehicle movements.
- Fire rules.
- Waste controls.
- Complaint handling.
- Site supervision.
Good information reduces avoidable questions.
Understand the Welsh deadlines
The authority has 28 days to decide whether prior approval is required.
If it confirms that prior approval is not required, follow the submitted plan.
If it does not respond within 28 days, you may proceed in accordance with the submitted information, subject to the legal exclusions and any protected site requirements.
If prior approval is required, provide the requested details.
The Welsh Government guidance says the authority should decide the prior approval application within eight weeks.
Do not start before written approval.
A conditional approval still binds you.
Follow the approved layout.
Follow the approved access.
Follow the approved waste and wastewater arrangements.
Do not add pitches, change the entrance or move facilities without checking the effect first.
For a material change, submit a new notification.
You can also ask to vary operating dates in advance. Do not change dates retrospectively.
In 2026, count days carefully. Days used under the old 28-day Class B right count against the new 60-day Class BA limit for that calendar year.
Read the Welsh Government temporary campsite guidance before you submit.
England’s Class BC route is different
England uses Class BC for temporary recreational campsites.
Class BC allows:
- Up to 60 days in a calendar year.
- Up to 50 pitches.
- Tents and qualifying motor caravans.
- Notification to the local planning authority before use begins.
England has no equivalent blanket 100m buffer from ordinary dwellings under Class BC.
That does not mean every site will work.
You still need to check:
- Listed building restrictions.
- SSSI and other protected land.
- Access and parking.
- Toilets and waste facilities.
- Highway safety.
- Noise and neighbour impact.
- Flood risk.
- Article 4 directions.
- Any planning conditions that remove permitted development rights.
Class BC is normally a notification route, not the Welsh Class BA determination and prior approval route.
If Class BC rights do not apply, you may need full planning permission.
Check the English Class BC legislation and local planning records before relying on the 60-day rule.
Common refusal and challenge points
Pre-empt these issues.
The 100m line is unclear
Show every nearby dwelling and every measurement.
The campsite crosses the buffer
Redraw the usable area.
The plan omits waste facilities
Show storage, collection and final disposal.
Access creates highway risk
Explain visibility, parking, turning and peak arrival times.
The site uses excluded land
Check flood zones, heritage designations and protected sites before designing pitches.
The application seeks permanent infrastructure
Class BA covers temporary use and moveable structures reasonably necessary for that use.
Permanent tracks, hardstanding, buildings and fixed facilities may need separate permission.
Make farm diversification work after the layout works
Good farm diversification starts with the site plan.
Choose fewer pitches if that gives you a compliant layout.
Use clear arrival times.
Keep guest facilities outside the buffer.
Separate vehicles from pedestrians where possible.
Manage waste from the first booking.
Keep records of dates, pitch numbers and site inspections.
This protects your planning position and supports a workable business.
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