- Nation
- Wales
- National planning policy
- Planning Policy Wales
- Planning authorities
- 2
- City
- Swansea
How councils in West Glamorgan look at it
Old titles can hold surprises, and gardens in West Glamorgan are no exception. A restrictive covenant may limit building, a mortgage lender must agree to release the plot, and a strip of land you don’t own can sit between your garden and the lane behind it. Trees in a conservation area or under a Tree Preservation Order need consent or notice before any work. We read the title documents as part of the appraisal, so problems come to light before you spend money on design rather than after it.
Planning authorities covering West Glamorgan include City and County of Swansea, Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council.
How it works
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.
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.
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.
Large rear gardens in towns across West Glamorgan
Questions about large rear gardens in West Glamorgan
Can neighbours combine their gardens in West Glamorgan?
Yes. Several adjoining back gardens can be put together for one scheme with a shared access, which can give a better layout than separate plots. Each owner keeps their own house, and an agreement shares the value fairly even when only one garden provides the way in.
Do I have to sell, or will you build on my land in West Glamorgan?
Either works. On the selling side there’s an outright sale, a sale subject to planning, an option, or a planning promotion on bigger or combined gardens. On the building side, you keep the land and we take a new home from design through planning to handover. A free appraisal comes first.
Is planning policy for back gardens the same across West Glamorgan?
No. National policy, PPW, applies everywhere, but each council adds its own plan and design guidance. Separation distances, garden sizes and parking standards can all differ. That’s why we never quote one rule for a whole county and always check the policies for your address.
Which national rules apply to a new home in West Glamorgan?
Garden schemes here sit under Planning Policy Wales (PPW), with the local detail coming from the council’s Local Development Plan (LDP). New homes must also meet the Building Regulations as they apply in Wales. That affects things such as sprinklers, which every new home in Wales must have. On drainage you’ll usually need approval from the SuDS Approval Body (SAB) before building starts, and land purchases fall under Land Transaction Tax (LTT). We check which rules apply to your plot as part of the free appraisal.