Backland Development
0800 088 6248Free to call Free plot appraisal

Build a new home in your garden in Hackney

Keep the land, gain a home: that is the design and build route we offer to garden owners in Hackney. Instead of selling a plot to a developer, you commission the new house yourself, with us managing design, planning, approvals and construction on your behalf.

It suits owners who can fund a build, or arrange finance for one, and who want the finished home rather than a land sale. If that isn’t you, our sell-or-partner routes may fit better, and the free appraisal compares both for your plot so you can choose with the facts in front of you.

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Timber-frame house under construction with scaffolding at the bottom of a back garden, seen from the patio
Planning authority
London Borough of Hackney
Postcodes
E2, E5, E8, E9, N16
Noon sun, 21 March
About 38°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.3 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Greater London

What the council will look at in Hackney

Access is where a garden plot anywhere in E2, E5, E8 and E9 tends to succeed or fail. A new drive needs enough width for cars, clear visibility where it meets the road, and enough distance from neighbouring windows to keep noise and headlights in check.

Policies in the council’s Local Plan, along with any highways advice the council receives, decide the detail for your address. We measure the gap beside your house on the first visit, and if it’s too tight for a home that can be approved and built safely, we’ll tell you before any design fees are spent.

Section showing noon sun and shadows in Hackney: about 38 degrees on 21 March and 15 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 38°, shadow 6.3 m21 Dec, noon: sun 15°, shadow 18.7 mExistingNew home
Noon sun in Hackney on 21 March sits about 38° above the horizon, so a typical two-storey eaves line (about 5 m) throws a shadow of roughly 6.3 m. In December the sun is only about 15° up and shadows stretch much further. Drawn for a garden facing north, where it matters most.

From first call to decision

If your Hackney plot already has planning permission, we begin by checking the approved drawings and conditions against the site. Some permissions need detailed design, discharge of conditions or a minor amendment before they can be built. We then prepare the technical drawings, arrange Building Regulations approval and the warranty, apply for utility connections and give you a written quote to build.

  1. Free plot appraisal

    We check the title plan, access, constraints and planning policy from our desk, talk the plot through with you, and visit if it looks viable. There’s no cost and no obligation.

  2. Survey and design

    A measured survey records levels, boundaries, trees and neighbouring windows. We then design a layout and house that suit the plot, the street and your budget, and decide whether pre-application advice is worth seeking.

  3. Written quote and build

    Once design and survey are complete you get a written quote. The build runs in stages — access and groundworks, foundations, frame and roof, fit-out and external works — with inspections at each key point.

  4. Handover

    You receive the completion certificate, warranty documents, Energy Performance Certificate, manuals and utility details, so the new home is ready to move into, let or put on the market.

Worth checking early

  • Your own garden gets smaller and the new home will be visible from your house, so screening and separation matter for both homes.
  • Planning can be refused, and money spent on surveys, design and the application isn’t recovered if it is — which is why we start with an appraisal.
  • A build next door means months of noise, deliveries and contractors near your home; good planning reduces the disruption but doesn’t remove it.

Your questions, answered for Hackney

Can the new home in my Hackney garden connect to the main sewer?

Usually, yes, but the route and depth decide how easily. The new home needs its own foul connection, agreed with the water company, and gravity drainage is simplest where the sewer sits lower than the new floor. If it doesn’t, a pumped connection may be needed. Where a public sewer runs under your garden, a build-over agreement or diversion may also be required.

How close can a new house be to my own in Hackney?

There’s no single national distance. 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 the guidance used by the London Borough of Hackney decides. Window positions, ground levels, roof shape and screening all affect what is acceptable, which is why we survey before we design.

Do you visit gardens in Hackney before giving advice?

We start with a desk review of the title plan, access, constraints and planning policy, then talk the plot through with you. If it looks viable, we arrange a site visit to see the access, levels, trees and neighbouring windows for ourselves. The appraisal is free and carries no obligation.

How long does planning take for a new home in a Hackney garden?

The statutory period for deciding a minor application, such as a single new home, is 8 weeks from the date the council receives a valid application, in both England and Wales. In practice many applications take longer, and the council may ask you to agree an extension in writing. Surveys and design before submission add time, and conditions may need approving afterwards.

Other options in Hackney

Build in your garden near Hackney

Find out what your garden could become

Free garden plot appraisal. No cost, no obligation, and a straight answer if it won’t work.

Get my free appraisal 0800 088 6248