The 28-day rule for camping, and what replaced it
The rule everyone quotes for pop-up campsites in England has largely been superseded. What the current permitted development right actually allows, and where caravans and motorhomes sit.
If you are planning to let campers onto your land in England, the "28-day rule" is probably not the rule you need any more. A newer permitted development right — commonly called the 60-day rule — replaced it for temporary campsites.
People still quote the 28-day version constantly, including in places that ought to know better. It is worth understanding what changed before you rely on advice written a few years ago.
What the 28-day rule was
Part 4, Class B of the General Permitted Development Order has long allowed land to be used temporarily for certain purposes, for a limited number of days in a calendar year, without applying for planning permission. For camping, that was widely understood as 28 days a year.
It was never as broad as its reputation. It came with conditions, it excluded some uses entirely, and it did not cover running a caravan site.
What replaced it
In July 2023 the government created a new permitted development right in England for temporary recreational campsites — a new use class, usually referred to as Class BC. Broadly:
- Up to 60 days in a calendar year, rather than 28
- Up to 50 pitches
- Conditions attached, including providing certain facilities and notifying the local planning authority
The older route for camping was then withdrawn from July 2024, with a narrow carve-out for camping connected to festivals. So for a farm or a field in England today, the 60-day right is the one to be looking at.
Where caravans and motorhomes sit — read this part
This is the distinction that matters most for anyone hosting vans, and it is where the old advice does the most damage.
The old 28-day camping right covered tents. It explicitly did not extend to running a caravan site. Caravan sites sit under a separate regime altogether — the Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960 — which requires a site licence unless an exemption applies.
Under the newer 60-day right, motorhomes and campervans are treated differently from touring caravans. Which category your visitors fall into changes the answer, and "it's only a couple of vans" is not a category.
If you are hosting motorhomes rather than tents, do not assume a camping permitted development right covers you. Ask your council specifically about the vehicles you expect.
The exemption route most pub and farm stopovers actually use
Many small stopovers do not rely on permitted development at all. They operate under an exemption from caravan site licensing — often a certificate issued by an exempted organisation such as one of the main caravan clubs, allowing a small number of units on a site without a full licence.
This is frequently the cleanest route for:
- A pub car park taking a few vans
- A farm with a corner of a field
- Anyone wanting something ongoing rather than 60 days a year
It is worth asking about before assuming you need planning permission or a full site licence.
Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
These rights are England-specific. Scotland and Wales have their own planning regimes and their own permitted development orders, and Northern Ireland differs again. If your land is not in England, none of the day counts above apply to you — start with your own planning authority.
What to actually do
- Ring your council's planning duty desk. Free, usually same-day, and they deal with this question constantly. Describe the vehicles, the numbers and the frequency.
- Ask specifically about motorhomes, not "camping". They are not the same question.
- Ask about the exemption route as well as permitted development — a certificate may suit you better than counting days.
- Tell your insurer whatever the answer is.
- Write down what you are told, with the date and the officer's name.
Why we are careful about this
Because getting it wrong lands on you, not on us. An enforcement notice is a serious thing, and the internet is full of confident advice about the 28-day rule that has been out of date since 2024.
We would rather have fewer hosts who are on solid ground than more hosts who are not.
In one line
In England, temporary camping now runs on a 60-day permitted development right, not the old 28-day one — and if your visitors arrive in vehicles rather than tents, that may not be the relevant rule at all.
Last reviewed 21 August 2026. Planning law changes and the detail matters more than the summary. This is general guidance and not legal or planning advice — your local planning authority is the authority on your site.
Sources: Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order — Part 4 · the 2023 temporary recreational campsites right (Class BC) · Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960.