- Planning authority
- Lancaster City Council
- Postcodes
- LA1
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 36°
- Noon sun, 21 December
- About 13°
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Lancashire
The kinds of plot we look at in Lancaster
Land that’s hard to reach isn’t automatically a lost cause. In Lancaster, as anywhere, a plot behind houses with narrow, shared or no access can sometimes be opened up by combining it with a neighbour’s garden, using an existing shared drive, or buying the strip of land that controls the way in. Ransom strips and rights of way need careful legal checks, and the council will look hard at a tandem layout where one house sits directly behind another. We’ll tell you honestly whether the access problem can be solved.
Planning and light in Lancaster
Small planning applications in Lancaster are usually decided by planning officers at Lancaster City Council under delegated powers, and national and council rules set out when, if ever, one goes to a planning committee instead. Either way, the application is judged on material considerations such as overlooking, daylight, highway safety and design, not on loss of a view or property values. A well-evidenced application that clearly addresses the policies in the council’s Local Plan gives your plot the fairest hearing. We prepare it with you and keep you informed; the decision rests with the council.
What we can do in Lancaster
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
- Large rear gardens
- Corner and side plots
- Garage courts and yards
- Tandem and landlocked plots
- Bungalows on large plots
What happens next
Getting a first view of your plot in Lancaster 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 Lancaster
Who decides planning for a new home in a garden in Lancaster?
The decision is made by Lancaster City Council, using the council’s Local Plan, the NPPF and its own design guidance. Small schemes are usually decided by planning officers, and national and council rules set out when one can go to a planning committee instead. We prepare and submit the application and answer the council’s questions, but we can’t promise the outcome.
Do you look at garage courts and yards in Lancaster?
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.
Can I team up with my neighbours in Lancaster?
Yes, and it can make a weak plot workable. Combining adjoining gardens can allow one shared access and a better layout. Each owner keeps their house, and a collaboration agreement sets out decisions, costs and how value is shared through equalisation. Every household should have its own solicitor.
What happens if planning is refused for a plot in Lancaster?
If you agreed a sale subject to planning, the contract doesn’t complete and you keep your land. We’ll then look at the reasons Lancaster City Council gave and tell you honestly whether a revised application, an appeal or stopping is the sensible choice. Nothing about your own house changes.