- Planning authority
- Oadby and Wigston Borough Council
- Postcodes
- LE18
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 37°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.5 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Leicestershire
How it plays out in Wigston
Oadby and Wigston 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 Wigston
Here’s what happens next for a family home in Wigston. You tell us about your plot and who the home is for, and we carry out a free desktop appraisal of access, space and the planning context. If it looks viable we visit, then set out the annexe and separate-home options. With your go-ahead we survey, design and give you a written quote, then prepare the application for Oadby and Wigston Borough Council.
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
- Planning is the council’s decision, and an annexe is not a way round the rules that apply to a new house.
- A separate home needs its own garden, parking, bins and access, so it needs more land than an annexe.
- CIL exemptions are lost if work starts before the claim is made, and can be withdrawn if the home is sold or let within three years.
Questions about garden plots in Wigston
Can I reclaim VAT on a family annexe in Wigston?
Often not. HMRC’s guidance gives an annexe that can’t be used or sold separately from the main house as an example of work that can’t be zero-rated, and the DIY housebuilders refund scheme asks the same question. A separate dwelling is usually treated differently. Take advice from a tax adviser before you settle the planning route, because the wording of the permission matters.
How much garden do I need for a family home in Wigston?
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 Oadby and Wigston 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.
How long will building work disrupt my home in Wigston?
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.
Can you design a home in Wigston 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 Oadby and Wigston 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 Wigston
- Build a new home in your garden
- Corner and side plots
- Garden plot option agreement
- Sell part of your garden
- Sell subject to planning
- Tandem and landlocked plots

