Brighton & Hove City Council
Shopfronts and shutters in Brighton
Brighton & Hove’s shop front SPD rules out roller shutters of any type except in three narrow cases, and on listed buildings solid shutters and visible boxes are not acceptable at all.
- Planning authority
- Brighton & Hove City Council
- Planning system
- England
- Main document
- Adopted 8 September 2005
- Status
- Adopted supplementary planning document
- Main retail streets
- Western Road, North Street, The Lanes, North Laine
- Our repairs
- Installation work only
Brighton & Hove adopted its Shop Front Design SPD on 8 September 2005. It is old, but it is specific in a way many newer guides are not: rather than “discouraging” roller shutters, it lists the only three situations in which it will accept one.
One of those situations is local to Brighton — the Kings Road Arches on the seafront, where there is no recognised need for a display after closing.
Shutters and security
Roller shutters need planning permission and, of any type or design, are not acceptable except in three cases.
Shop Front Design SPD, section 6The three cases: isolated locations or special circumstances where police-backed evidence shows a real security problem and police-advised measures have been tried; open-fronted shops with no window, such as butchers, fishmongers and greengrocers; and places with no need for a display after hours, such as the Kings Road Arches.
Shop Front Design SPD, section 6Even then the box must be hidden behind or beneath the fascia, and the shutter painted to match the shopfront or bronze anodised.
Shop Front Design SPD, section 6On listed buildings, listed building consent is always required for security measures, and solid shutters and visible box housings are not acceptable.
Shop Front Design SPD, section 8
Sources
- Shop Front Design SPDAdopted 8 September 2005 · Adopted supplementary planning document · read on 9 October 2026
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