Planning permission for Garden rooms – what you need to know

Many of us have sheds in our gardens. Some were probably inherited when we moved house and are versatile enough to be a gardener’s store, a hobby sanctuary or just a place to keep bicycles and other items that won’t fit anywhere else. But do you need Planning permission for Garden rooms

However, there has been a rise in the number of structures for our outdoor spaces, which provide for less utilitarian purposes. Garden rooms provide an extra space which, when kitted out properly, can become a home office or a second room for relaxation.

After the initial enthusiasm to adopt a garden room and extend the versatility and usefulness of your property, there are several things to consider.

Most garden rooms don’t require planning permission. Being classed as outbuildings, you are permitted to build one as long as you comply with certain rules.

Permitted development rights
Most properties have this automatically. However, if the property is in a National Park, a World Heritage Site or a conservation area, it could be in a designated area where development of a property or the erection of outbuildings are not permitted, or require separate permission. It is a good idea to check with your local planning office. Maisonettes and flats don’t have permitted development rights because of the communal aspect. The rules are the same whether you live in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland or Wales.

Planning rules
Under permitted development, there are rules to follow:-

• The garden room must not be at the front of the house
• The total area of all external structures including sheds, extensions and outbuildings must not exceed 50% of the outside area surrounding the house
• The room or cabin must be single storey and less than three metres in height. The eaves must be no more than 2.5 metres above ground level.
• The room must not be for self-contained living accommodation
• The room must not have a balcony, veranda or raised platform.

Garden rooms as offices
Using a garden room as an office also presents no issues, provided it is for incidental use for working alone at a computer, for example.

However, being mindful of changing the character of a neighbourhood, councils will not approve garden offices where business meetings or appointments will be hosted.

Retrospective planning permission can be applied for, but councils can order the removal of a garden office if the rules are not met.

In summary, garden rooms rarely require planning permission, provided the basic rules on size and usage are observed. However, if in doubt, check with your local authority.

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Abolition of ground rents on new properties moves a step closer but only on new property

Currently a Leasehold Reform Bill is being debated in parliament that will abolish ground rents on new properties charged.

Not to be confused with standard monthly rent paid to the owner of the property, ground rent is a rental charge attached to the ground on which the property sits. It is paid annually or half yearly, and failure to pay can result in the freeholder seeking to obtain possession.

The Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Bill will put an end to ground rents for new, qualifying, long residential leasehold properties in England and Wales. This is part of the most significant changes to property law in a generation.

It will be the first of two part legislation to reform the leasehold system. This Bill will mean that if any ground rent on new properties is demanded as part of a new residential long lease, it cannot be for more than one peppercorn per year (notional value) meaning that future leaseholders will not be faced with financial demands for ground rent. The Bill also bans freeholders from charging administration fees for collecting a peppercorn rent. Fines of up to £5,000 will be levied on freeholders that charge ground rent in contravention of the Bill. 

Some leaseholders have experienced ground rents doubling every ten years on top of their mortgage and any service charges, with no prospect of ever selling the property on. Their only way out has been to buy the freehold, only to discover this is yet another area targeted by the profiteers.

Developers, including some household names, have been selling newly built flats (and houses) as leasehold, creating high annual ground rents and including provisions in leases for the rent to be increased – sometimes doubled – after a certain period of time.  A number of buyers of this type of property have, quite often, been told by the builder that they would be given the opportunity to buy the freehold at a later time before the builder developing the site, only to find that, when they try to buy the freehold, the builder has already sold it to an investment company. Critics of the bill are rightly complaining that it does not go far enough, because existing leaseholders are not included in the new Bill as it is currently structured.
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Be fully aware of your options and the consequences of accessing or moving your pension pot

When the rules were relaxed on pension holders having access to their pension pots, an event such as the COVID pandemic and its consequences were not considered. In 2020 figures from the ABI (Association of British Insurers) showed that the number of people moving your pension pot as a form of flexible income grew by 56% between April and September of that year.

This example, though caused by an extreme event, illustrates two things. Firstly, how useful it is to be able to access funds when needed, something which would not have been possible before the rule changes, but secondly, that the ease with which the pension pot can be accessed for immediate use or to move to another savings provider is a cause for concern if pension holders are unaware of all the pros and cons.

The government is therefore rightly concerned that whilst accessing pensions pots should be simple and easy to do, it wants pension holders to be more aware of their options so that they are fully informed before moving or accessing their money.

Currently, pension providers are only obliged to tell their customers that free and impartial advice is available from Pension Wise, the service promoted by the government to help individuals aged 50 and over with a defined contribution pension, understand the options available to them.

In new rules which have just been set out, the Department for Work & Pensions (DWP) is proposing that pension scheme managers and trustees make sure the individual has either received or opted out of receiving Pension Wise guidance, before allowing their application to proceed.

Pension schemes would also be required to offer to book a Pension Wise appointment on the individual’s behalf. If the appointment is declined, the DWP is proposing that pension holders will have to formally opt out, before they can proceed to the next step.

The DWP is right to make individuals pause and give them the option to be better informed before taking the plunge. However, when the consultation is complete, it is to be hoped that the final rules will not be too draconian in respect of Pension Wise appointments and end up increasing extra administration costs for pension providers and inhibiting access to funds for transfer or for immediate use.
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