Planning Permission & Garden Buildings

We are very experienced regarding planning permission for garden buildings, so do call if you would like to chat through your ideas.

Many kinds of buildings and structures can be built in your garden or on the land around your house without the need to apply for planning permission. These can include sheds, garages, summerhouses, log cabins etc.   For a fixed fee, we will carry out your planning permission for you or will offer advice if you would rather handle this yourself.

Current planning guidelines are as follows:

• Garden buildings are not permitted development forward of the principal elevation of your house.  This means the house as it was originally built or as it stood on 1 July 1948.
• Outbuildings must not cover more than half the area of land around the "original house".
• You must apply for planning if your building or structure is to be used for running a business or storing commercial goods.
• You must apply for planning for separate self-contained living accommodation and for microwave antennas.
• Buildings or structures that are positioned within 2 metres of your boundary (in England) must not exceed 2.5m in height.  We can design your garden office, summerhouse or log cabin to be under 2.5m in height to keep the planners happy!
• Buildings or structures that are positioned more than 2 metres from your boundary must not exceed 3 metres in height, or more than 4 metres high with a ridged roof. (Most of our buildings are under 4 metres in height).
• You must apply for planning permission if your house is listed, you live within a conservation area, a national park or the broads, an area of outstanding natural beauty (A.O.B.) or a world heritage site.  In these areas, the total area of any building (more than 20 metres from the wall of your house) must not exceed 10 sqm.
  
  Building Regulation Approval
• If a structure is over 30 sq m internally you will need building regulation approval. Please call us for further information. We are able to design and build to meet full building regulation standards.