- Planning authority
- St Albans City and District Council
- Postcodes
- AL1, AL2, AL3, AL4
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 38°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.3 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Hertfordshire
The local picture in St Albans
For a corner or side plot in St Albans, the decision rests with St Albans City and District Council. Its starting point is the council’s Local Plan, read alongside national policy and any design guidance it has adopted, which usually covers how a new home should line up with, space itself from and match the height of the houses around it.
Our designs begin with those documents rather than a standard house type. Where it helps, we seek pre-application advice, so the home we propose answers local expectations before an application goes in.
How we’d take it forward in St Albans
After you contact us about a side or corner plot in St Albans, we start with a desktop check: maps, the title plan, street views and nearby planning history. We then call to talk through what you want. If the plot looks viable, we visit, measure the street and check the drive position. You get a plain summary of the options, with no obligation.
Free plot appraisal
We look at your plot on maps, the title plan and street views, check planning history nearby and talk it through with you. If a home beside yours looks possible we visit. No cost, no obligation.
Read the street
We measure the plot and record the building line, the gaps between houses, roof heights, materials and boundary walls, then check where a new drive could go and what drivers would be able to see from it.
Design and planning
We draw a home that sits in the street rather than fighting it, usually take pre-application advice, and submit the application. The council consults neighbours and decides; small schemes often take a few months.
Sale or build
For a sale, your solicitor handles the transfer of part and any release from your lender. For a build, a written quote follows design and survey, then we build, arrange the warranty and hand over.
Worth checking early
- Losing a side garden or drive changes how your house works day to day, from parking to getting bins round the back.
- Attaching a home to yours brings party wall, fire and sound separation work, and changes the feel of your own house.
- Corners kept open by design can be harder to build on than they look; character can matter more than space.
St Albans: questions to ask
Is my St Albans side garden wide enough for a new house?
It depends on how wide homes are in your street, the gaps between them, whether the new home would be attached or detached and what the council’s design guidance says. There’s no single minimum width. We measure your plot and the street as part of a free appraisal.
Can I attach a new home to my house in St Albans?
Yes, where it suits the street, for example on the end of a semi-detached pair. It needs planning permission as a separate home, fire and sound separation under Building Regulations, and possibly a party wall agreement. We check whether attached or detached fits your road better.
Which body approves a new home on a side plot in St Albans?
The planning decision belongs to St Albans City and District Council. It checks the proposal against the council’s Local Plan, national policy and its own design guidance, and asks neighbours and the highway authority for their views first. Our role is to prepare and submit a strong application; approval or refusal is the council’s call alone.
Is there a fee for checking my side plot in St Albans?
There’s no fee. The appraisal is free and you’re under no obligation. We work from maps, the title and a phone call first, and only visit if the plot seems worth it. Nothing binds you until you’ve picked a route and read the written terms.
Other options in St Albans
- Garden plot option agreement
- Large rear gardens
- Planning promotion for your garden plot
- Sell part of your garden
- Joint venture on your garden plot
- Sell subject to planning