Guidance
The questions worth understanding before you spend anything.
Written for homeowners rather than for planners. Each guide covers one of the questions a garden annexe case actually turns on, in ordinary language, without the jargon that makes this subject seem harder than it is.
Guides
Start with whichever question is yours.
Plain-English guides to the questions a garden annexe case actually turns on.
- 9 min read
Granny annexe planning permission: do you need it?
When a granny annexe needs planning permission, when it does not, and how to get the answer in writing before you buy.
Read the guide - 8 min read
The Caravan Act and garden annexes: what the law says
The legal definition a mobile home or twin-unit annexe has to meet, the size limits, and the use test that matters just as much.
Read the guide - 5 min read
How much does a lawful development certificate cost?
The council’s fee, what a professional service costs on top, and what changes the total — with a fee check for your council.
Read the guide - 6 min read
What happens if a lawful development certificate is refused?
What a refusal does and does not mean, the most common reasons for one, and your options afterwards — including appeal.
Read the guide - 6 min read
Lawful development certificates for garden annexes and mobile homes
What a certificate is, what it is not, and why homeowners apply for one before siting an annexe or mobile home.
Read the guide - 5 min read
Residential curtilage, and why it decides where an annexe can go
Curtilage is not the same as your title boundary. The difference decides whether a position works.
Read the guide - 6 min read
Ancillary occupation: one household, not two addresses
The question is how a family lives, not what the building contains. Kitchens are not the deciding factor.
Read the guide
Coming next
Topics we’re writing up.
Published when they’re finished, not half-written. If one of these is your question, just ask us in the meantime.
- Garden annexes in conservation areas and National Parks
- Selling a house with a garden annexe
- Council tax and garden annexes
- Bases, services and the works around an annexe
Next step
Reading only takes you so far.
These guides explain the principles. Whether they help or hinder your particular proposal depends on facts only an assessment of your property can establish.
Planning approval is not guaranteed — the council makes the final decision.