Backland Development
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Build a home for family in your garden in Tewkesbury

For grown-up children in Tewkesbury, the step to a first home can be a long one. If your garden is big enough, a small separate house on part of it could become theirs: with its own planning permission and title, it can be mortgaged in their name and sold when they move on.

That asks more of the plot than an annexe does, including its own garden, parking and an access Tewkesbury Borough Council will accept. We look at all of that in a free plot appraisal, then design and build the home if the scheme stacks up and you want to go ahead.

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Single-storey garden home with wide glazed doors and a covered porch at the back of a family garden
Planning authority
Tewkesbury Borough Council
Postcodes
GL20
Noon sun, 21 March
About 38°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.4 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Gloucestershire

What the council will look at in Tewkesbury

Tewkesbury Borough Council will judge a family home against the council’s Local Plan and any guidance it has adopted on garden development and annexes. Some councils spell out how closely an annexe must relate to the main house, such as sharing the drive, garden or parking, and what turns a building into a separate home instead. We read the current policies for your address before design starts, because a scheme drawn to suit the wrong test wastes time and money. Where the position is unclear, the council’s pre-application advice can be worth its fee.

Section showing noon sun and shadows in Tewkesbury: about 38 degrees on 21 March and 15 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 38°, shadow 6.4 m21 Dec, noon: sun 15°, shadow 19.2 mExistingNew home
This section is worked out for the latitude of Tewkesbury: around 38° of sun at midday in late March and about 15° at midwinter. It shows why the gap between your house and a new home behind it is about light as well as privacy. Garden assumed to face north.

The next steps, locally

Getting started in Tewkesbury costs nothing. Send us a few photos of your garden and the way in, or simply call, and we’ll look at the plot from the desk and talk through your family’s plans. If there’s a realistic scheme, we arrange a site visit. Survey and design are quoted in writing before you commit, and the build price follows once the design is settled.

  1. Free plot appraisal

    We look at your plot, access and the planning picture from the desk, talk through who will live in the new home, and visit if it looks viable. There’s no cost and no obligation.

  2. Annexe or separate home

    We set out both routes for your plot, covering what each means for planning, ownership, council tax, CIL and VAT, so you can decide with your family and advisers before design starts.

  3. Survey and design

    A measured survey, then a design built around the person moving in: step-free routes, a ground-floor bedroom if needed and privacy for both households. You get a written quote after design and survey.

  4. Planning and approvals

    We prepare and submit the planning application and manage it with the council, which makes the decision. Before work starts, approval under the Building Regulations is in place and any CIL exemption has been claimed.

Worth checking early

  • Family plans change: agree ownership, costs and what happens if circumstances change in writing, with a solicitor.
  • An annexe tied by planning condition usually can’t be sold or let separately, which limits flexibility later.
  • A separate home needs its own garden, parking, bins and access, so it needs more land than an annexe.

Your questions, answered for Tewkesbury

How long will building work disrupt my home in Tewkesbury?

A single garden home usually takes several months on site, with the noisiest work, such as groundworks, drainage and heavy deliveries, concentrated near the start. We agree working hours, access and parking with you up front, and with the people next door where it affects them, so your household knows what each week will look like.

Who owns an annexe built in my Tewkesbury garden?

You do. An annexe stays on the title of your house and usually carries a planning condition tying it to the main home, so it can’t be transferred to the relative living in it. If a family member is paying towards it, record what they’ve put in and what happens on a sale in a written agreement drawn up by a solicitor.

Will an annexe in Tewkesbury put up my council tax?

It might. Annexes can be banded separately, but exemptions exist for annexes lived in by certain dependent relatives, and in some cases a discount applies where family live there or the annexe is used as part of the main home. Who qualifies depends on the relative’s circumstances and how the annexe is used. Tewkesbury Borough Council’s council tax team can tell you how the rules apply to your household.

Can you design a home in Tewkesbury for a relative who uses a wheelchair?

Yes. The design can include a level approach and threshold, turning space in each room, a wet room, wider doors and worktops at a usable height. Where Tewkesbury Borough Council requires a particular access standard through planning, the design meets it; otherwise it’s your choice how far to go. Input from your relative’s occupational therapist is well worth having.

Other options in Tewkesbury

Family home in your garden near Tewkesbury

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