Backland Development
0800 088 6248Free to call Free plot appraisal

Build a home for family in your garden in Whitchurch

Two households, one plot: that’s the idea behind a family home in a Whitchurch garden. Done well, each has privacy and a front door, yet help is a few steps away. Done badly, it can strain relationships and leave a building nobody can use when circumstances change.

The difference lies mostly in the planning route and the layout. Backland Development is a new S&K Group brand offering design and build to homeowners in Whitchurch and the surrounding area, and each project begins with a free plot appraisal that weighs an annexe against a separate home for your family.

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
Shropshire Council
Postcodes
SY13
Noon sun, 21 March
About 37°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.6 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Shropshire

Before you decide in Whitchurch

A measured survey is where a family home in Whitchurch stops being an idea and becomes a plan. We record boundaries, levels, trees, drains and the windows of your house and the houses next door, then test where the new building can sit. With the spring equinox sun standing near 37° at midday here, a 5 m eaves line throws a noon shadow close to 6.6 m; drawing that onto the survey shows which positions keep light in the main rooms of both homes. Shropshire Council will expect to see the same evidence with the application.

Section showing noon sun and shadows in Whitchurch: about 37 degrees on 21 March and 14 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 37°, shadow 6.6 m21 Dec, noon: sun 14°, shadow 20.7 mExistingNew home
Noon sun in Whitchurch on 21 March sits about 37° above the horizon, so a typical two-storey eaves line (about 5 m) throws a shadow of roughly 6.6 m. In December the sun is only about 14° up and shadows stretch much further. Drawn for a garden facing north, where it matters most.

What happens next in Whitchurch

The next step is a conversation, by phone or through the form, about your garden in Whitchurch 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

  • Planning is the council’s decision, and an annexe is not a way round the rules that apply to a new house.
  • An annexe tied by planning condition usually can’t be sold or let separately, which limits flexibility later.
  • Family plans change: agree ownership, costs and what happens if circumstances change in writing, with a solicitor.

Whitchurch: questions to ask

Who owns an annexe built in my Whitchurch 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 Whitchurch 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. Shropshire 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 Whitchurch?

Yes, almost always for a detached annexe with its own kitchen, bathroom and bedroom. Shropshire 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.

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

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 Shropshire 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.

Other options in Whitchurch

Family home in your garden near Whitchurch

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