Planning permission and architectural design are two very different things. While sometimes confused, these two concepts are very distinct. Planning permission is the process of getting planning – the branch of local government in charge of land-use planning in a particular area – to agree to your development. This might involve getting your project assessed by a team of experts, such as a design review board (DRB), before you can go ahead. Architectural design is what you do with your drawings once you’ve received the okay from planning. This is the stage where you start to put your design into practice. It’s where you will be working on the exterior and interior design of your new home. There’s a lot of overlap between the two, but they’re no substitute for each other. For example, if you’re finalising your design, but you don’t have planning permission, then you’re not ready to start working on architectural design. If you don’t have planning permission and you’re not working on architectural design, then you’re not ready to work on planning either. If you’re working on both planning and architectural design at the same time, then you’re probably planning ahead.