CIL cannot be charged by a local authority unless a ‘charging schedule’ is in force on the day planning permission for a qualifying development is granted. A charging schedule is a local authority document which sets out how CIL in the area will be calculated. It must be published on the local authority’s website (and a hard copy must be available for inspection).

The charging schedule must contain certain information such as the rate(s) of CIL, where the rate(s) will apply (the rate(s) will then be index-linked by reference to the construction costs index published by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors) and when the charging schedule will take effect.

There may be different rates of CIL by reference, for example, to the intended use of the development but the rate(s) must, among other things, aim to strike an appropriate balance between raising CIL and the potential effects of CIL on the economic viability of development across the local authority area (including, in the case of a London borough council, having regard to the rate(s) of CIL rates set by the Mayor of London).

There is an obligatory consultation procedure under which, for example, the local authority must consult various bodies, including voluntary bodies whose activities benefit the local authority area, and invite them to make representations.