- Planning authority
- Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council
- Postcodes
- L20, L22
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 37°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.7 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Merseyside
The local picture in Bootle
Daylight is one of the first things Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council will check on a garden house. At midday on 21 March the sun in Bootle stands roughly 37° above the horizon, so an eaves line about 5 m high casts a shadow of around 6.7 m. On 21 December the sun is only about 13° up and shadows stretch far longer.
That’s why the gap between your house and the new one, and the height of the new roof, are set by measurement rather than guesswork. A lower eaves line, a hipped roof or a single-storey section can make a real difference to the gardens either side.
What happens next in Bootle
Once you ask for an appraisal of your Bootle garden, we start with the paperwork: the title plan, any covenants, flood maps, tree and conservation designations, and planning decisions on nearby plots. A short call follows, then a site visit if the plot passes the desk check. You get our straight view of what’s realistic and what happens next, with no obligation to go further.
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.
Planning and approvals
We submit the planning application and manage it to a decision, then deal with conditions, Building Regulations approval, the structural warranty, any build-over agreement and the new utility connections.
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.
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
- You fund the build and carry the cost risk; ground conditions, sewer diversions or supply upgrades found later can move the price.
- 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.
- Your own garden gets smaller and the new home will be visible from your house, so screening and separation matter for both homes.
Bootle: questions to ask
Can I build a house in my Bootle garden and then sell it?
Yes. You keep the land while the home is built, then sell the finished house. Before building starts, the plot should be given its own title through a transfer of part at HM Land Registry, and if your house is mortgaged your lender must agree to release the plot. Selling a home you’ve built can change your tax position, so take advice from a tax adviser first.
Do new homes in Bootle need a structural warranty?
If the house will ever be sold or mortgaged, in practice yes. Mortgage lenders usually expect a 10-year structural warranty on a new home, though some accept an architect’s or surveyor’s certificate, and a warranty provider inspects the work at stages during the build, so it has to be in place before construction starts. Building control approval is separate and also required; a buyer’s solicitor will ask for both.
Do you visit gardens in Bootle 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.
Can I build a house in my garden in Bootle and keep the land?
Yes. On our design and build route you remain the owner while we design the home, apply to Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council for planning, deal with Building Regulations and build it. The finished house can be sold, let or kept for family. Whether your plot can take a house depends on access, space, neighbours and local policy, and the decision rests with the council.
Other options in Bootle
- Bungalows on large plots
- Large rear gardens
- Joint venture on your garden plot
- Sell part of your garden
- Build a home for family in your garden
- Garden plot option agreement

