{{ref improve|date=September 2012}}

A '''local planning authority''' ('''LPA''')<ref>http://www.pas.gov.uk/pas/core/page.do?pageId=12397</ref> is the [[local authority]] or [[Local government in the United Kingdom|council]] that is empowered by law to exercise statutory [[town planning]] functions for a particular area of the [[United Kingdom]]. Although, in [[Scotland]], where all of the local authorities are unitary, the term 'planning authority' is used without the 'local' prefix. The authority is often the local [[Metropolitan borough|borough]] or [[Non-metropolitan district|district council]]. [[National park authority|National park authorities]] and the [[Broads Authority]] are also local planning authorities. [[County Council]]s (where they exist) are the Local Planning Authority for waste and minerals matters and for their own developments, such as most schools, care homes, fire stations and non trunk roads. The [[London Legacy Development Corporation]] has also been designated the local planning authority for the area of east London that was redeveloped into the [[Olympic Park, London|Olympic Park]] for the [[2012 Summer Olympics]]. Local planning authorities also exist in the [[Republic of Ireland]].<ref>[http://www.ichpa.com/CHP_Online_Tool/Local_Authority_Planning_Section.php Local Planning Authorities in Ireland]{{dead|date=September 2012}}</ref>