- Planning authority
- East Suffolk Council
- Postcodes
- IP11
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 38°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.4 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Suffolk
The local picture in Felixstowe
Overshadowing is often the deciding issue in a long garden. At midday on 21 March the sun in Felixstowe stands about 38° above the horizon, so a typical two-storey eaves line throws a shadow of roughly 6.4 m. In midwinter the noon sun is only about 15° 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.
What happens next in Felixstowe
Send us your address in Felixstowe and a rough idea of what you’d like. We check the planning history around you and the policies East Suffolk 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.
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.
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.
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.
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
- Surveys and drawings cost money before any decision. On a subject-to-planning sale we normally fund them; on a build you do.
- A shorter garden changes how your own house feels to live in and may affect what it is worth.
- Cars passing beside your house to reach the new home bring noise and headlights; screening helps but doesn’t remove it.
Felixstowe: questions to ask
Who decides planning for a home in a Felixstowe back garden?
East Suffolk 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.
Will my neighbours in Felixstowe 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.
Does it cost anything to have my Felixstowe 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 you build a home for my family in my garden in Felixstowe?
Yes. If you keep the land, we can design the home, apply for planning permission, build it once permission is granted and arrange the structural warranty lenders usually expect. You receive a written quote after design and survey. If the home is for a relative who will share your kitchen and front door, an annexe may suit better.
Other options in Felixstowe
- Planning promotion for your garden plot
- Tandem and landlocked plots
- Plot feasibility and design
- Sell part of your garden
- Combine gardens with your neighbours
- Build a new home in your garden