- Planning authority
- Bedford Borough Council
- Postcodes
- MK42
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 38°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.4 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Bedfordshire
How it plays out in Kempston
Daylight is one of the first things Bedford Borough Council will test on a garden scheme, so we test it first too. At midday on 21 March the sun over Kempston sits about 38° above the horizon, and a typical two-storey eaves line around 5 m high throws a shadow of roughly 6.4 m. In late December the noon sun reaches only about 14°, so winter shadows run roughly three times longer. Plotting both on the measured survey shows where a new home can stand without darkening the gardens and rooms around it.
How we’d take it forward in Kempston
From first call to a clear answer, feasibility work in Kempston follows a simple order: free appraisal, written quote, measured survey, title and constraints check, access and capacity study, concept designs, and pre-application advice from Bedford Borough Council where it helps. You get a short report setting out the options, and the choice of what happens next stays with you.
Free plot appraisal
A desktop look at your plot, access, title plan and the planning picture, plus a conversation about what you want. If it looks viable we visit. There’s no cost and no obligation at this stage.
Scope and written quote
If you want to go further, we set out which surveys and checks your plot needs and what they will cost, in writing. Nothing is commissioned until you have agreed the scope and the price.
Survey and constraints check
A measured survey of the plot and its surroundings, then a check of the title, services, trees, flood risk and heritage designations, so the design starts from facts rather than guesses.
Access and capacity study
We test each workable route in and the number, size and position of homes the plot could hold, against separation distances, garden space, parking, bins and daylight for neighbours.
Worth checking early
- A capacity figure is not a value; what a plot is worth depends on location, size, access and planning.
- Some ecology surveys can only be done at certain times of year, which can affect the programme.
- Title problems such as covenants, ransom strips or missing rights of way can take time and money to resolve.
Kempston: questions to ask
How much does a feasibility study cost in Kempston?
It depends on the plot. A simple garden with a clear drive needs less work than one with protected trees, a flood zone or a complicated title. The first appraisal is free. After that we set out the scope and the price in writing, and you choose whether to go ahead before anything is commissioned.
How do I know if my garden in Kempston is big enough for a house?
Size alone won’t tell you. What matters is whether there is a workable access, enough distance from neighbours’ windows, room for gardens, parking and bins for both homes, and nothing on the title or in policy that rules it out. A feasibility study checks each of those for your plot. The first stage, a free plot appraisal, gives you an early view.
What if my Kempston garden plot fails the feasibility check?
Then you know before spending money on a planning application, and you know why. Sometimes a smaller scheme, an annexe, or working with the neighbours next door changes the answer, and we will say if so. If nothing does, you keep the survey and the report for the future. You are under no obligation to us either way.
How many homes could fit in my garden in Kempston?
That is what a capacity study answers. It tests options against separation distances from neighbours, garden space for each home, parking, bins and access, as well as the policies Bedford Borough Council applies. For many gardens the answer is one home; larger or combined plots can sometimes take more. We show the options on drawings so you can see why.
Other options in Kempston
- Combine gardens with your neighbours
- Garden plot option agreement
- Joint venture on your garden plot
- Planning promotion for your garden plot
- Tandem and landlocked plots
- Build a new home in your garden