- Planning authority
- Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council
- Postcodes
- DY4
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 37°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.5 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- West Midlands
How it plays out in Tipton
A measured survey is where a family home in Tipton 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 6.5 m; drawing that onto the survey shows which positions keep light in the main rooms of both homes. Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council will expect to see the same evidence with the application.
The next steps, locally
Here’s what happens next for a family home in Tipton. 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 Sandwell Metropolitan 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.
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.
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
- An annexe tied by planning condition usually can’t be sold or let separately, which limits flexibility later.
- Planning is the council’s decision, and an annexe is not a way round the rules that apply to a new house.
- Family plans change: agree ownership, costs and what happens if circumstances change in writing, with a solicitor.
Tipton: questions to ask
Who owns an annexe built in my Tipton 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.
Is CIL payable on a family home in Tipton?
Only if Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council 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.
How long will building work disrupt my home in Tipton?
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.
How much garden do I need for a family home in Tipton?
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 Sandwell Metropolitan 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.
Other options in Tipton
- Build a new home in your garden
- Bungalows on large plots
- Tandem and landlocked plots
- Sell part of your garden
- Joint venture on your garden plot
- Plot feasibility and design

