- Planning authority
- Central Bedfordshire Council
- Postcodes
- SG18
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 38°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.4 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Bedfordshire
Biggleswade: light, access and policy
Back gardens in SG18, as anywhere, tend to be divided by fences, hedges and the odd tree, and a combined scheme has to work with all of them. Old boundary hedges may be habitat worth keeping, and mature trees may need an assessment before anything is designed.
We map these features across all the gardens at once, so the layout keeps what matters and the application to Central Bedfordshire Council shows how trees and wildlife have been considered. Doing it across the whole site is simpler and cheaper than doing it garden by garden.
How we’d take it forward in Biggleswade
To start, send us the addresses of the gardens involved in Biggleswade, or just your own if the neighbours haven’t been asked yet. We run a free desk-based check of the titles, access options and planning position, then explain in writing whether a combined scheme looks realistic before anyone talks to the neighbours in detail.
Free appraisal of the combined land
We look at all the titles together, the possible access points, the surrounding homes and the planning policies that apply, then explain whether a combined scheme looks realistic and roughly what it might allow.
Agree how value is shared
Heads of terms set out the route, each owner’s share, any extra for the garden providing the access, what happens if someone drops out, and the cap on each owner’s reasonable legal fees where it applies.
Collaboration agreement
Each owner’s own solicitor reviews the documents, and everyone signs a collaboration agreement alongside the sale, option or promotion agreement. Mortgage lenders are asked to consent early, and the agreements are usually protected on each title.
Completion and shares paid
When the site is sold with planning, or bought by us as agreed, each owner transfers their part, and the proceeds are divided through the solicitors exactly as the collaboration agreement sets out.
Worth checking early
- Every owner’s mortgage lender, title and covenants have to be dealt with, and one problem can hold up everyone.
- If the garden providing the access drops out before signing, the whole scheme may not work.
- Tax depends on each owner’s circumstances, so each should take advice from a tax adviser.
Questions about garden plots in Biggleswade
How many neighbours in Biggleswade need to take part?
As few as two can be enough. What matters is that the gardens taking part make a workable site and that one of them provides access to the road. We tell you which gardens are essential and which would simply improve the scheme.
Can neighbours in Biggleswade combine their back gardens for new homes?
Yes, where the gardens adjoin and there’s a workable access. Each owner keeps their house, the land behind is planned as one site, and a collaboration agreement sets out how the value is shared. Central Bedfordshire Council decides any planning application on its merits.
Does each Biggleswade owner keep their own house and garden?
Yes. Each owner keeps their house and an agreed garden for it. Only the land behind is transferred, as a transfer of part at HM Land Registry. New boundaries and fencing for each house are agreed as part of the design.
Will Central Bedfordshire Council prefer a combined scheme to single plots in Biggleswade?
It often gives the council a better scheme to assess, with one proper access and more space between homes. But every application is judged on its merits against the council’s Local Plan, and the decision is the council’s. We test the layout against its policies before applying.
Other options in Biggleswade
- Build a home for family in your garden
- Sell part of your garden
- Planning permission for a garden plot
- Garage courts and yards
- Planning promotion for your garden plot
- Build a new home in your garden