Building in a large rear garden in Hazel Grove

Before paying for drawings of a new home in your Hazel Grove garden, it helps to know whether the basics stack up. Can a car get in and turn? How far would the new home sit from your back windows and your neighbours’? Would your own house keep a decent garden and somewhere to park?

We answer those questions in a free garden plot appraisal, starting with maps, the title plan and nearby planning history, then a visit if the plot looks viable. You’ll come away knowing whether selling or building makes more sense for you, and what Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council is likely to ask about.

Overhead view of three long, narrow back gardens with lawns, a greenhouse, vegetable beds and sheds
Planning authority
Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council
Postcodes
SK7
Noon sun, 21 March
About 37°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.7 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Greater Manchester

The local picture in Hazel Grove

Overshadowing is often the deciding issue in a long garden. At midday on 21 March the sun in Hazel Grove stands about 37° above the horizon, so a typical two-storey eaves line throws a shadow of roughly 6.7 m. In midwinter the noon sun is only about 13° up and shadows stretch around three times as far.

That’s why the gap between a new home and neighbouring gardens matters, and why a lower roof, or a home set further from the boundary, can make a scheme acceptable. We check the shadows on your actual plot rather than relying on rules of thumb.

Section showing noon sun and shadows in Hazel Grove: about 37 degrees on 21 March and 13 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 37°, shadow 6.7 m21 Dec, noon: sun 13°, shadow 21.4 mExistingNew home
This section is worked out for the latitude of Hazel Grove: around 37° of sun at midday in late March and about 13° 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.

How we’d take it forward in Hazel Grove

Send us your address in Hazel Grove and a rough idea of what you’d like. We check the planning history around you and the policies Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council applies, and look for anything in the title that could get in the way. If the garden passes those checks, we arrange a visit at a time that suits you and explain each route in plain terms.

  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 shorter garden changes how your own house feels to live in and may affect what it is worth.
  • A covenant, a mortgage, a public sewer or a protected tree can slow a scheme down or stop it altogether.
  • Neighbours are consulted and may object. The council decides, and a carefully designed scheme can still be refused.

Questions about garden plots in Hazel Grove

How long does planning take for a garden home in Hazel Grove?

It varies. Small schemes often take a few months from submission to decision, and longer if surveys, amendments or extra consultation are needed. Pre-application advice and early surveys add time at the start but can save time later. We won’t promise a date, because the council sets the pace.

Who decides planning for a home in a Hazel Grove back garden?

Stockport Metropolitan Borough 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.

Can I build a house in my back garden in Hazel Grove?

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 Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council makes the decision. A free appraisal will tell you whether your garden is worth taking further.

Does it cost anything to have my Hazel Grove 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.

Other options in Hazel Grove

Large rear gardens near Hazel Grove

Find out what your garden could become

Free garden plot appraisal. No cost, no obligation, and a straight answer if it won’t work.