Backland Development
0800 088 6248Free to call Free plot appraisal

Building in a large rear garden in St Austell

If your back garden in St Austell runs well past the patio and the lawn you actually use, the far end might be a building plot. Whether it is depends on four things: depth, a safe way in, what sits around it, and how a new home would affect the neighbours.

Backland Development looks at gardens like yours for free. If it looks workable, you can sell the plot and keep living in your house, or keep the land and have us design, get planning for and build a new home there. We’re a new brand within the S&K Group, and we’ll tell you straight if your garden isn’t a plot.

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Overhead view of three long, narrow back gardens with lawns, a greenhouse, vegetable beds and sheds
Planning authority
Cornwall Council
Postcodes
PL25, PL26
Noon sun, 21 March
About 40°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.0 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Cornwall

Before you decide in St Austell

Access is where many garden schemes succeed or fail, in St Austell as anywhere. A drive squeezed past the side of a house has to be wide enough for cars, give drivers a clear view as they pull out, and keep noise and headlights from bothering the people next door. A new or wider dropped kerb also needs the highway authority’s consent.

Homes in PL25 and PL26 with a garage or a wide side passage often start ahead here. Where the gap is tight, a smaller home, a shared drive with a neighbour or access from a lane behind may still work. Because Cornwall Council will look closely at the detail, we design the access before the house.

Section showing noon sun and shadows in St Austell: about 40 degrees on 21 March and 16 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 40°, shadow 6.0 m21 Dec, noon: sun 16°, shadow 17.2 mExistingNew home
This section is worked out for the latitude of St Austell: around 40° of sun at midday in late March and about 16° at midwinter. It shows why the gap between your house and a new home behind it is about light as well as privacy. Garden assumed to face north.

From first call to decision

An enquiry about a St Austell garden can start with a short call and a few photos of the garden and the side of the house. A desktop check follows, then a site visit if it’s worth one. If you choose to sell, we agree heads of terms and your solicitor takes it from there. If you choose to build, we move on to a measured survey and design, and a written quote follows.

  1. Free plot appraisal

    We look at your garden using maps, the title plan and the planning history around you, then talk it through with you. If it looks workable we arrange a site visit. There’s no cost and no obligation.

  2. Choose your route

    You decide whether to sell the plot outright, sell subject to planning, grant an option, team up with neighbours, or keep the land and have us design, get planning for and build a home on it.

  3. Planning application

    We prepare the drawings and reports, usually take pre-application advice, and submit. The council consults neighbours and decides. Small schemes often take a few months from submission, longer if surveys or amendments are needed.

  4. Sale or build

    If you sell, your solicitor handles the transfer of part and your lender’s release of the plot. If you build, we give a written quote after design and survey, then build and hand over the new home.

Worth checking early

  • A covenant, a mortgage, a public sewer or a protected tree can slow a scheme down or stop it altogether.
  • Cars passing beside your house to reach the new home bring noise and headlights; screening helps but doesn’t remove it.
  • Neighbours are consulted and may object. The council decides, and a carefully designed scheme can still be refused.

Your questions, answered for St Austell

Does it cost anything to have my St Austell garden looked at?

No. The garden plot appraisal is free and carries no obligation. It starts with a desktop check and a conversation, and we arrange a site visit if your garden looks viable. You only commit to anything once you’ve chosen a route and seen the terms in writing.

Can I build a house in my back garden in St Austell?

Possibly, if the garden is deep enough, has a safe way in and a new home wouldn’t harm the neighbours or the character of the street. A new separate home always needs planning permission, and Cornwall Council makes the decision. A free appraisal will tell you whether your garden is worth taking further.

How do I find out if my St Austell garden is big enough for a house?

Ask for a free garden plot appraisal. We measure depth and the width of the way in, check what lies behind, look at levels, trees and drainage, and compare your garden with your council’s separation and garden-size guidance. Size alone rarely settles it, because access and neighbours’ privacy matter just as much.

Who decides planning for a home in a St Austell back garden?

Cornwall Council decides, using the council’s Local Plan, national policy and any local design guidance. It consults neighbours and other bodies before reaching a decision. We prepare the application and deal with the planning officer, but the outcome is always the council’s call.

Other options in St Austell

Large rear gardens near St Austell

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