creating an outdoor approved range

[Thorney]

Ok, having worn this t shirt for some time, it's complicated but in simple terms

1. No planning permission is needed for a range but you will need planning for any earth bunds for the backstops and sides.

2. Min height for a backstop for .22 calibre (and others, it's a muzzle velocity thing as well) is 4.97m, sides 3.98m that's for a 100m range, will be a bit lower for a 25m but not much.

3. Land owner will need insurance cover for it to operate which needs either a classification of a HO approved range so the range will need approval from the nra or you can sort your own insurance cover via other means (but if you want to be a club then you need nra approval of the range design)

It's a lot more complicated than that, with angles of fire, deflection, material type, bund angle etc etc but that's the basics.

Drop me a message if you want to know more, you might say I've become a bit of an expert in the planning side over the last 2 years!

1. If you use the land as a range for more than 28 days per year you need planning permission as a range is Sui Generis and there is no Permitted Development change of use from farm land to a SG use class.

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True but the rules on usage (exclusivity, access, etc) are easy to fudge in that regard, but the lack of backstop will cause the most issues.

[sharps4065]

Thorney, could you provide references as to where it states that the NRA has been given legal responsibility for approving range design for Home Office approved Clubs?

[Thorney]

Thorney, could you provide references as to where it states that the NRA has been given legal responsibility for approving range design for Home Office approved Clubs?

It's not stated "the NRA" but (I'm paraphrasing as I don't have it in front of me) a 'Home Office recognised organsiation' of which the NRA is the most cited. Of course it comes back to the JSP 403 which essentially is the bible in terms of range design (amongst a whole load of other stuff) which specifies all the intricate details. A lot of the rules are much like the legislation on firearms generally - a whole lot of written rules combined with interpreted doctrines but for the purposes of a PP you tend to go with the most cited and most recognised, which for the UK is the NRA.

[sharps4065]

Much to the delight of the NRA....

[Thorney]

Trust me, when looking for planning permission for a shooting range the NRA are very much not one of the issues you face and have (in our case) been very supportive. However the list of things and people you do have to deal with is long, varied and in our case borderline corrupt.