Backland Development
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Building plots in large rear gardens in the West Midlands

A garden that once suited a young family can feel like a lot of lawn to mow later on. For owners in the West Midlands with a long rear garden, the far end might be put to better use as a building plot, though only a proper look at the site can say whether that’s realistic.

Backland Development was set up recently, as part of the S&K Group, to help homeowners turn spare garden land into new homes. You choose how involved you want to be. Sell the plot and stay where you are, or keep the land while we create a new home there for family, to let or to sell.

Get a free appraisalAbout large rear gardens
Overhead view of three long, narrow back gardens with lawns, a greenhouse, vegetable beds and sheds
Nation
England
National planning policy
NPPF
Planning authorities
7
City
Birmingham

How councils in the West Midlands look at it

Old titles can hold surprises, and gardens in the West Midlands 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 the West Midlands include Birmingham City Council, City of Wolverhampton Council, Coventry City Council, Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council, Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council, Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council, Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council.

How it works

  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.

  5. 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 the West Midlands

Questions about large rear gardens in the West Midlands

Do you look at large rear gardens in the West Midlands?

Yes. We cover the whole of the West Midlands, as part of our coverage across England and Wales. Send us your address and a few details about your garden, and we’ll carry out a free desktop appraisal before suggesting a site visit.

Do I have to sell, or will you build on my land in the West Midlands?

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.

Can neighbours combine their gardens in the West Midlands?

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.

Can you build a new home in my garden in the West Midlands for me to keep?

Yes. Through our design and build route we survey your plot, design a new home with you, apply for planning and, once permission is granted, build it. You keep the land and the new home, to sell, let or use for family. You get a written quote after design and survey, and any earlier guide price is a guide only.

Other options in the West Midlands

Everything we cover in the West Midlands

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