Backland Development
0800 088 6248Free to call Free plot appraisal

Build a home for family in your garden in Wandsworth

If you have a long or wide garden in Wandsworth, there may be room for a home where a parent or grown-up child can live close by with their own front door. That might mean an annexe used with your house, or a home that stands alone with permission and paperwork of its own.

The London Borough of Wandsworth decides either way, so the first step is to find out what your plot can realistically carry. Our free plot appraisal covers access, space, privacy and the main planning constraints, and talks through who the home is for, before you spend any money on drawings.

Get a free appraisalCheck my garden
Single-storey garden home with wide glazed doors and a covered porch at the back of a family garden
Planning authority
London Borough of Wandsworth
Postcodes
SW11, SW15, SW17, SW18
Noon sun, 21 March
About 39°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.3 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Greater London

How it plays out in Wandsworth

The London Borough of Wandsworth 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 Wandsworth: about 39 degrees on 21 March and 15 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 39°, shadow 6.3 m21 Dec, noon: sun 15°, shadow 18.5 mExistingNew home
This section is worked out for the latitude of Wandsworth: around 39° 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.

What happens next in Wandsworth

From first call to keys, a family home in Wandsworth follows a clear order. Free appraisal and site visit; measured survey and design around the person moving in; a planning application to the London Borough of Wandsworth; approval under the Building Regulations and any CIL exemption claimed before work starts; then the build, with you living next door throughout. You receive a written quote after design and survey, and we keep the household updated at each stage.

  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

  • A separate home needs its own garden, parking, bins and access, so it needs more land than an annexe.
  • An annexe tied by planning condition usually can’t be sold or let separately, which limits flexibility later.
  • CIL exemptions are lost if work starts before the claim is made, and can be withdrawn if the home is sold or let within three years.

Your questions, answered for Wandsworth

How long will building work disrupt my home in Wandsworth?

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.

Is CIL payable on a family home in Wandsworth?

Only if the London Borough of Wandsworth has adopted the Community Infrastructure Levy, which its website will confirm, and we check it for you during the appraisal. Where it applies, self-build and residential annexe exemptions exist, but both must be claimed before work starts and can be withdrawn if the home is sold or let within three years of completion.

Do I need planning permission for a granny annexe in Wandsworth?

Yes, almost always for a detached annexe with its own kitchen, bathroom and bedroom. The London Borough of Wandsworth will treat it as accommodation linked to your home and will usually add a condition so it can’t be let or sold separately. A garden building used only as a home office or gym is a different matter, but sleeping and cooking take it beyond those allowances.

Can you design a home in Wandsworth 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 the London Borough of Wandsworth 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 Wandsworth

Family home in your garden near Wandsworth

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