Backland Development
0800 088 6248Free to call Free plot appraisal

Building in a large rear garden in Epsom

Before paying for drawings of a new home in your Epsom 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 Epsom and Ewell Borough Council is likely to ask about.

Get a free appraisalCheck my garden
Overhead view of three long, narrow back gardens with lawns, a greenhouse, vegetable beds and sheds
Planning authority
Epsom and Ewell Borough Council
Postcodes
KT17, KT19
Noon sun, 21 March
About 39°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.2 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Surrey

Before you decide in Epsom

Look along your road and the roads behind it. If homes in Epsom or in Ewell, Banstead and Leatherhead already stand behind the original houses, that shows the council the pattern exists locally, although it never makes a new permission certain. Where back gardens are unbroken, a first home behind the street faces closer scrutiny.

How much weight that carries is set out in the council’s Local Plan and in any design guide adopted by Epsom and Ewell Borough Council. We read both before drawing anything, so your scheme answers the questions the planning officer is likely to ask.

Section showing noon sun and shadows in Epsom: about 39 degrees on 21 March and 15 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 39°, shadow 6.2 m21 Dec, noon: sun 15°, shadow 18.4 mExistingNew home
This section is worked out for the latitude of Epsom: around 39° of sun at midday in late March and about 15° 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.

What happens next in Epsom

Here’s what happens after you get in touch about a garden in Epsom. We look at maps, the title plan and nearby planning history, then call you to talk it through. If the plot looks viable we visit, measure up and check access, levels and trees. You then get a plain summary of what could fit and the routes open to you, with no obligation to take any of them.

  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. 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.
  • Surveys and drawings cost money before any decision. On a subject-to-planning sale we normally fund them; on a build you do.
  • Neighbours are consulted and may object. The council decides, and a carefully designed scheme can still be refused.

Questions about garden plots in Epsom

How long does planning take for a garden home in Epsom?

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.

Does it cost anything to have my Epsom 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 Epsom?

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.

Can I build a house in my back garden in Epsom?

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 Epsom and Ewell Borough Council makes the decision. A free appraisal will tell you whether your garden is worth taking further.

Other options in Epsom

Large rear gardens near Epsom

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