ArchFor any property in England
Know your planning position before you commit
ArchLens checks your project against permitted development law, your council's adopted planning policies and the Building Regulations — and produces structured, citation-backed reports in minutes. Built for architectural practices, homeowners and developers.
- Professional Reports
- England-Wide Coverage
- Structured & Accurate
- Secure & Confidential
How it works
Three steps to an answer you can act on
No account setup call, no consultant's diary. Answer what you already know about the project and read the result.
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Enter the address
We resolve the council, its adopted local plan and the site constraints on record — conservation area, listing, Article 4, protected trees.
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Describe the proposal
One question at a time, in plain English. Upload your drawings and the dimensions are read off them, so you are not typing numbers you already drew.
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Read the report
The route, the policy position and what is still outstanding — every finding traced to the paragraph it came from.
What you get
The checks a planning consultant would run, written down
A risk rating you can act on
Not a score for its own sake. The rating names the policies your scheme conflicts with, says what would resolve each one, and tells you how much of the submission is still missing.
- Conflicts separated from things that merely need justifying
- Readiness measured against that council's own validation list
- An honest “not enough information” where the answer is not yet knowable
Every policy checked by name
Your council's adopted policies, cited by reference and paragraph — not a generic summary of national guidance. Where a policy is met, it says so and moves on.
- Local plan policies and supplementary planning guidance
- The London Plan where the borough sits inside it
- National policy and permitted development law everywhere else
A report you can hand over
PDF and Word, laid out to be read by a client, a case officer or a colleague. The planning statement pulls its facts from the assessment rather than asking you to retype them.
- Planning assessment, Building Regulations review and planning statement
- Editable Word output for anything you want to word differently
- Every figure traceable to the drawing or answer it came from
The Project Assistant
Every project can answer for itself.
A chat built into every project — it already knows the address, the council, the drawings and everything still outstanding. Ask it anything, or let it work through what's left.
Reads the real project
Address, council, uploaded drawings and every outstanding check — not a blank chat window.
Cites its source
Every answer traces to a real policy or paragraph — the same libraries the reports use.
Never writes without you
It can suggest an update to your project. Nothing is saved until you click confirm.
Who Are You?
Two Audiences. One Engine.
The same rules and policy engine powers both — the difference is how you use it.
Architectural Practices
- Triage new enquiries in minutes, before you quote
- Citation-locked findings — GPDO limits, council SPD references, Approved Document paragraphs
- Cross-check drawing packs and generate statement drafts to refine
Homeowners & Developers
- Understand your project's planning position before spending on drawings or fees
- Plain-English reports on extensions, lofts, outbuildings, conversions and HMOs
- Site constraints checked against official government data, not guesswork
How It Works
What ArchLens Does
ArchLens combines your property and proposal details with structured analysis to produce clear, professional reports and documents — helping you understand the requirements before you commit to formal drawings or a planning application.
Create a Project
Start by adding your property details and proposed works. Your details are kept secure and private to your account.
Answer Guided Questions
A step-by-step wizard collects the information needed to analyse your project and identify the likely planning route, with plain-English help throughout.
Review Your Report
Receive a clear, structured report covering key findings, requirements and recommended next steps for your submission.
Our Tools
Two Assessment Tools, Plus a Statement Generator
Both assessments run on a structured rules and policy engine, not a single freeform AI prompt — the engine determines the outcome; AI only explains it in plain English.
Planning Assessment
A rules engine identifies your permitted development route, verifies site constraints such as conservation areas and Article 4 directions against official data, and checks your proposal against your council's own adopted planning policies — every finding cites its source.
Building Regulations Assessment
Checks your proposal against the England Approved Documents — structure, fire safety, thermal performance, ventilation, drainage and accessibility — with every conclusion traceable to its exact paragraph.
Planning Statement Generator
Produces a structured supporting statement covering site context, design approach, amenity and access — built from the same verified route and policy findings, ready to refine with a professional.
The Policy Engine
Rules Decide. AI Only Explains.
Most AI planning tools guess at the regulations from memory. ArchLens checks your proposal against a structured, version-controlled library of permitted development law, national planning policy and your council's own adopted planning documents — the AI's job is to write up what the engine has already decided, never to decide it.
Deterministic, Not Guessed
Every conclusion comes from a versioned rules and policy library — GPDO permitted development law, the National Planning Policy Framework, and your council's adopted SPDs — never the AI's own recollection of the regulations.
Checked Against Verified Data
Your site is checked against official government datasets for conservation areas, Article 4 directions, listed buildings and flood zones — not just what you tell us.
Full Traceability
Every finding shows exactly which policy, document and paragraph it comes from, and the legal weight it carries — so you see the reasoning, not just the answer.
Citation-locked local policy libraries are live today for Hounslow, Ealing, Hillingdon, Brent, Richmond upon Thames, Slough, Harrow, Hammersmith & Fulham, Wandsworth, Kingston upon Thames, Spelthorne, Barnet, Merton, Croydon, Redbridge, Elmbridge, Kensington & Chelsea, Windsor & Maidenhead, Three Rivers, Westminster, Camden, Lambeth, Bromley, Sutton, Enfield, Haringey, Epping Forest, Watford, Hertsmere, Islington, Hackney, Southwark, Lewisham, Greenwich, Tower Hamlets, Waltham Forest, Havering, Runnymede, St Albans, Barking & Dagenham, Newham, City of London, Bexley, Woking, Guildford, Reigate & Banstead, Epsom & Ewell, Mole Valley, Dacorum and Welwyn Hatfield. Everywhere else in England, your project is checked against national planning policy and permitted development law, with local coverage added as new areas are authored.
Pricing
How Credits Work
ArchLens uses a simple credit system. New accounts receive a welcome credit balance. Credits are spent when you generate a report, and only when generation succeeds — a failed report never costs you credits.
Generate Reports
Planning, Building Regulations and Statement reports each use a set number of credits, shown before you generate.
Unlock Downloads
View a report preview for free once generated; unlock the PDF and optional Word download when you're ready.
Add Credits
Top up your balance at any time from your account. Credit packs are shown in pounds sterling.
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Secure & PrivateYour data stays private to your account
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Pay Only for SuccessFailed reports never charge credits
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Use AnytimeCredits never expire
About
What's Included vs. When to Bring in a Professional
ArchLens helps you understand your project and options — so you can decide with confidence and involve a professional at the right time.
What ArchLens Provides
Clear, plain-English preliminary guidance based on the information you supply — useful for early-stage understanding and planning conversations.
What It Does Not Provide
ArchLens does not guarantee planning permission, permitted development compliance, or Building Regulations approval. It is not legal, structural or fire-engineering advice, and does not include drawings.
Professional Review
For project-specific advice, drawings or submissions, request professional assistance from SY Design Studio directly from your dashboard.
Security
Security and Privacy
Project information is sent to our AI provider solely to generate your report. See our Privacy Policy for full details.
Hashed Passwords & Secure Sessions
Your password is never stored in plain text, and sessions use industry-standard security practices.
Role-Based Access Control
Your projects and reports are only ever visible to your account and, where relevant, our admin team.
Data Used Only to Generate Your Report
Project details are shared with our AI provider for report generation, and for nothing else.
Support
Frequently Asked Questions
No. ArchLens provides general preliminary guidance only. It does not guarantee planning permission, permitted development compliance, Building Regulations approval, or any specific outcome from a local authority.
No. Reports are general guidance based on the information you provide. Structural calculations, fire-engineering approval and legal advice require a suitably qualified professional.
You are never charged credits for a failed report. If generation fails, any reserved credits are automatically restored to your balance.
Yes. You can request professional review from SY Design Studio directly from any project or report in your dashboard.
SY Design Studio Ltd provides architectural design and planning/technical drawing services. Specific qualifications and registrations are not implied unless explicitly stated.
Yes, where a local policy library has been built for your council — currently Hounslow, Ealing, Hillingdon, Brent, Richmond upon Thames, Slough, Harrow, Hammersmith & Fulham, Wandsworth, Kingston upon Thames, Spelthorne, Barnet, Merton, Croydon, Redbridge, Elmbridge, Kensington & Chelsea, Windsor & Maidenhead, Three Rivers, Westminster, Camden, Lambeth, Bromley, Sutton, Enfield, Haringey, Epping Forest, Watford, Hertsmere, Islington, Hackney, Southwark, Lewisham, Greenwich, Tower Hamlets, Waltham Forest, Havering, Runnymede, St Albans, Barking & Dagenham, Newham, City of London, Bexley, Woking, Guildford, Reigate & Banstead, Epsom & Ewell, Mole Valley, Dacorum and Welwyn Hatfield. Everywhere else in England, your project is checked against national planning policy and permitted development law, and the report states plainly which applies.
Yes. Every project has a Project Assistant that already knows its address, council, uploaded drawings and outstanding checks. It answers in plain English with citations from the same policy libraries used in your reports, and can suggest an update to your project — but nothing is saved until you confirm it.
Ready to assess your project?
Create a free account and generate your first assessment in minutes.