Backland Development
0800 088 6248Free to call Free plot appraisal

Build a home for family in your garden in Sittingbourne

If you have a long or wide garden in Sittingbourne, 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.

Swale Borough Council 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.

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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
Swale Borough Council
Postcodes
ME9, ME10
Noon sun, 21 March
About 39°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.3 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Kent

What shapes a plot in Sittingbourne

How the two households will live together shapes the planning case as much as the drawings do. If your parent will eat with you, share the garden and rely on you day to day, an annexe is the natural fit, and that is what Swale Borough Council will expect the application to describe. If your son or daughter will run their own home, pay their own bills and perhaps sell up one day, it is a separate dwelling and will be assessed against the council’s Local Plan as a new house. For a family in ME9 and ME10, we help set that out clearly from the start.

Section showing noon sun and shadows in Sittingbourne: 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 18.4 mExistingNew home
Noon sun in Sittingbourne on 21 March sits about 39° 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

The next step is a conversation, by phone or through the form, about your garden in Sittingbourne and who the new home is for. We check access, title, the main planning constraints and any CIL position for your address, then tell you whether an annexe, a separate home or neither looks realistic. If neither does, we’ll say so and explain why.

  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. Build and handover

    We build while you carry on living next door, with access, deliveries and working hours agreed up front. At handover you get the completion certificate and the paperwork you’ll need for council tax, lenders and any VAT claim.

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.
  • VAT savings available on a separate dwelling often don’t apply to an annexe; take advice from a tax adviser before choosing.

Your questions, answered for Sittingbourne

Can you design a home in Sittingbourne 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 Swale 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.

How much garden do I need for a family home in Sittingbourne?

There’s no fixed figure. A single-storey annexe close to the house can work on a smaller plot than a separate dwelling, which needs its own garden, parking and access. What matters is whether Swale Borough Council can be satisfied on privacy, daylight and the space left for both homes. The free appraisal gives you a first view based on your plot’s actual shape and access.

Can I build a separate house in my Sittingbourne garden for my son or daughter?

Possibly, if the plot can work as a home in its own right. Swale Borough Council will look at access, parking, garden space for both houses, privacy and the character of the street, as it would for any new house. If permission is granted, the plot can be transferred to your child with its own title, with your lender’s consent if the house is mortgaged.

Who owns an annexe built in my Sittingbourne 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 Sittingbourne

Family home in your garden near Sittingbourne

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