- Planning authority
- Wiltshire Council
- Postcodes
- SN11
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 39°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.3 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Wiltshire
What the council will look at in Calne
Look along your road and the roads behind it. If homes in Calne or in Chippenham, Devizes and Melksham 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 Wiltshire Council. We read both before drawing anything, so your scheme answers the questions the planning officer is likely to ask.
The next steps, locally
Send us your address in Calne and a rough idea of what you’d like. We check the planning history around you and the policies Wiltshire 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.
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.
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 covenant, a mortgage, a public sewer or a protected tree can slow a scheme down or stop it altogether.
- A shorter garden changes how your own house feels to live in and may affect what it is worth.
Your questions, answered for Calne
Can I sell the end of my garden in Calne 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.
Will my neighbours in Calne 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.
How long does planning take for a garden home in Calne?
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.
Can you build a home for my family in my garden in Calne?
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 Calne
- Plot feasibility and design
- Build a home for family in your garden
- Garden plot option agreement
- Planning promotion for your garden plot
- Corner and side plots
- Tandem and landlocked plots