- Planning authority
- Oxford City Council
- Postcodes
- OX1, OX3, OX4
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 38°
- Noon sun, 21 December
- About 15°
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Oxfordshire
The kinds of plot we look at in Oxford
Not every plot we consider is a garden. Garage courts, lock-up blocks, old workshops and yards behind houses in Oxford can sometimes take a new home, particularly where a vehicle access already exists. These sites raise their own questions, such as who owns the access, whether anyone else has rights over it and what the ground was used for before. Alongside them, we consider long back gardens, wide side gardens, corner plots and bungalows on large plots, each judged on its own access, space and planning position.
Planning and light in Oxford
Planning applications for new homes in gardens in Oxford are decided by Oxford City Council. Its decisions follow the council’s Local Plan and the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF). Officers usually focus on access, privacy, daylight, the character of the street and the garden left for both homes. Many councils use separation guides of around 21 metres between facing back windows and around 12 to 15 metres between a back window and a blank side wall, but Oxford City Council’s own guidance decides. We prepare the application with care; the decision is always the council’s.
What we can do in Oxford
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
The next step is simple. Use the form or call us with your Oxford address and, if you can, a rough idea of the garden’s length, width and how a vehicle might reach it. We’ll do a desktop check, talk it through with you and arrange a site visit if the plot looks viable. There’s no cost and no obligation.
Questions about garden plots in Oxford
How do you stop a new home in Oxford overshadowing the neighbours?
By testing the layout against the sun and the council’s guidance. At midday on 21 March the sun in Oxford 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.
Who decides planning for a new home in a garden in Oxford?
The decision is made by Oxford 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.
Can you build a house in my back garden in Oxford 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 Oxford?
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 Oxford City Council grants permission. If planning is refused on a conditional sale, you keep your land.