- Planning authority
- Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council
- Postcodes
- M43
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 37°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.8 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Greater Manchester
Before you decide in Droylsden
Tameside Metropolitan 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.
How we’d take it forward in Droylsden
Getting started in Droylsden 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.
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.
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.
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.
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
- CIL exemptions are lost if work starts before the claim is made, and can be withdrawn if the home is sold or let within three years.
- A separate home needs its own garden, parking, bins and access, so it needs more land than an annexe.
- Family plans change: agree ownership, costs and what happens if circumstances change in writing, with a solicitor.
Questions about garden plots in Droylsden
Will an annexe in Droylsden 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. Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council’s council tax team can tell you how the rules apply to your household.
Do I need planning permission for a granny annexe in Droylsden?
Yes, almost always for a detached annexe with its own kitchen, bathroom and bedroom. Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council 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 Droylsden 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 Tameside Metropolitan 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.
Who owns an annexe built in my Droylsden 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.
Other options in Droylsden
- Joint venture on your garden plot
- Plot feasibility and design
- Tandem and landlocked plots
- Combine gardens with your neighbours
- Garden plot option agreement
- Bungalows on large plots

