Backland Development
0800 088 6248Free to call Free plot appraisal

Building in a large rear garden in Portishead

Before paying for drawings of a new home in your Portishead 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 North Somerset Council is likely to ask about.

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Overhead view of three long, narrow back gardens with lawns, a greenhouse, vegetable beds and sheds
Planning authority
North Somerset Council
Postcodes
BS20
Noon sun, 21 March
About 39°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.3 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Somerset

What shapes a plot in Portishead

Access is where many garden schemes succeed or fail, in Portishead 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 BS20 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 North Somerset Council will look closely at the detail, we design the access before the house.

Section showing noon sun and shadows in Portishead: about 39 degrees on 21 March and 15 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 39°, shadow 6.3 m21 Dec, noon: sun 15°, shadow 18.6 mExistingNew home
Noon sun in Portishead on 21 March sits about 39° above the horizon, so a typical two-storey eaves line (about 5 m) throws a shadow of roughly 6.3 m. In December the sun is only about 15° up and shadows stretch much further. Drawn for a garden facing north, where it matters most.

What happens next in Portishead

Send us your address in Portishead and a rough idea of what you’d like. We check the planning history around you and the policies North Somerset 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. Measure and test the layout

    We check depth, the width of the way in, levels, trees, drains and what lies behind, then sketch what could realistically fit: one home, two, or nothing worth pursuing, before anyone pays for an application.

  3. 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.

  4. 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.

Worth checking early

  • A shorter garden changes how your own house feels to live in and may affect what it is worth.
  • Surveys and drawings cost money before any decision. On a subject-to-planning sale we normally fund them; on a build you do.
  • Cars passing beside your house to reach the new home bring noise and headlights; screening helps but doesn’t remove it.

Your questions, answered for Portishead

Will my neighbours in Portishead get a say?

Yes. The council consults neighbours on planning applications, and they can comment or object. Their comments are weighed alongside policy, but objections alone don’t decide the outcome. A layout that respects privacy, light and access usually gives neighbours less to worry about, so we design with them in mind.

Can I sell the end of my garden in Portishead and keep my house?

Yes. The plot is sold as a transfer of part and gets its own title at HM Land Registry. If your house is mortgaged, your lender must agree to release the plot. We can buy suitable plots with or without planning, always subject to survey, title and contract.

Does it cost anything to have my Portishead 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 Portishead?

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 North Somerset Council makes the decision. A free appraisal will tell you whether your garden is worth taking further.

Other options in Portishead

Large rear gardens near Portishead

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