- Planning authority
- London Borough of Hackney
- Postcodes
- E2, E5, E8, E9, N16
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 38°
- Noon sun, 21 December
- About 15°
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Greater London
The kinds of plot we look at in Hackney
Sometimes the plot that works isn’t a single garden at all. Two or three adjoining back gardens in Hackney can often be combined into one scheme with one shared access, giving a better layout than any of them alone. Each owner keeps their house, and a collaboration agreement with an equalisation clause shares the value fairly. If your own garden is too narrow or too short to work on its own, it’s worth asking whether the neighbours might be interested too.
Planning and light in Hackney
Shadows tell a council a lot about a garden plot. In Hackney, the noon sun on 21 December reaches only about 15° above the horizon, while by 21 March it has climbed to around 38°, when a 5 m eaves line casts a shadow of roughly 6.3 m. On a garden plot anywhere in E2, E5, E8 and E9, that difference shapes how far apart the old and new homes need to be, which windows face which way, and whether a single-storey or roof-lit design would sit more comfortably. Planning officers at the London Borough of Hackney will expect those effects on neighbours to be understood before they decide.
What we can do in Hackney
Sell or partner
- Sell part of your garden
- Sell subject to planning
- Garden plot option agreement
- Planning promotion for your garden plot
- Joint venture on your garden plot
- Combine gardens with your neighbours
Design and build
- Build a new home in your garden
- Planning permission for a garden plot
- Build a home for family in your garden
- Plot feasibility and design
By plot type
What happens next
Getting a first view of your plot in Hackney costs nothing. Send us the address through the form, or give us a call, and we’ll check access, size, title and the planning picture from our desk. If it looks promising, we’ll visit, explain the routes that could work and put the main terms in writing before you’re asked to decide anything.
Questions about garden plots in Hackney
Can you build a house in my back garden in Hackney that I keep?
Yes. Our design and build route covers the survey, design, planning application, Building Regulations, construction and handover, while the land and the new home stay yours. You can sell it, let it or use it for family. You’ll get a written quote once the design and survey are done, and any earlier price range is a guide only.
Can I sell part of my garden in Hackney?
Often, yes, if the plot is big enough, has a workable access and stands a reasonable chance of planning. We buy suitable plots directly, with or without planning, subject to survey, title and contract, or agree a sale that only completes if the London Borough of Hackney grants permission. If planning is refused on a conditional sale, you keep your land.
Do you look at garage courts and yards in Hackney?
Yes. Garage courts, lock-up blocks, old yards and outbuildings behind houses can sometimes take a new home, especially where a vehicle access already exists. We check who owns the access, what rights others have over it and what the ground was used for, as part of the free appraisal.
How do you stop a new home in Hackney overshadowing the neighbours?
By testing the layout against the sun and the council’s guidance. At midday on 21 March the sun in Hackney is about 38° up, so a 5 m eaves line casts a shadow of roughly 6.3 m; in December it is far lower. Spacing, roof height, orientation and single-storey designs all help keep light where it belongs.