A new fly-on-the-wall BBC documentary series that promises to “lift the lid” on the planning process starts tonight.

The second series of Permission Impossible: Britain’s Planners will look at the work of planning officers in local authorities including in Cheshire, Greater Manchester, the Scottish Borders and Gloucestershire.

The eight-part series, to be broadcast from Tuesdays to Fridays over the next two weeks, is designed to reveal the reasons for planning approvals and refusals, address homeowners’ misconceptions and expose people with “blatant disregard” for planning laws.

“We’ll show the lengths homeowners will go to protect their properties from disputes with developers intent on building large-scale housing developments to clashes even closer to home - neighbour against neighbour fighting it out over extensions, conversions, and garden erections,” the production team said.

Issues covered in tonight’s episode include plans by housebuilders to build 1,500 homes near Ellesmere Port in Cheshire and the fight by planning officer Graham Boase to save a Grade II-listed building in Denbigh, north Wales.

John McLarty, Partner in the Development and Planning Team at Strutt & Parker, said: “The start of the next series of Britain’s Planners will only continue to raise the bar in terms of engagement and understanding of the planning process.

“The recent announcement on housing growth by Labour leader Ed Miliband has been a real game-changer and more exposure to planning can only but help the industry improve and help communities understand the pressures faced by a growing population.

“The planning process will be under further spotlight in the forthcoming local and European elections and we shall see this play out in relation to green belt and garden city challenges over the coming months,” John added.

Late last year, Mr Miliband announced plans to give councils greater powers to purchase land or charge fees if developers fail to build on land that has been given planning permission.

The first episode of Permission Impossible: Britain’s Planners is broadcast on at 7pm on BBC Two on Tuesday 25 February 2014.