- Planning authority
- Peterborough City Council
- Postcodes
- PE1, PE2, PE3, PE4, PE7
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 37°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.5 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Cambridgeshire
What the council will look at in Peterborough
Before we suggest a combined scheme for homes in PE1, PE2, PE3 and PE4, we read what the council’s Local Plan says about garden land, design and parking, and we look at past decisions on similar sites nearby. Those tell us how the council has treated backland schemes before.
If policy points against building behind the houses, combining gardens won’t change that, and we’ll say so. If it supports well-designed schemes with proper access, a combined site is often the best way to meet that standard.
The next steps, locally
The steps for neighbours in Peterborough are: free appraisal, a meeting with the owners, heads of terms, signed agreements, one planning application, then completion and payment of each owner’s share. Setting up a group takes longer than a single plot, and timing depends on the owners, the lenders and the council, so we give ranges rather than promises.
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.
One planning application
We prepare and submit a single application for the whole site, with one shared access and a layout designed around all the existing homes. The council decides it, and nobody can promise the result.
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
- Planning is still the council’s decision; a combined scheme is often stronger, but it can still be refused.
- Several owners have to agree, so a combined scheme usually takes longer to set up than a single plot.
- Tax depends on each owner’s circumstances, so each should take advice from a tax adviser.
Peterborough: questions to ask
What if one neighbour in Peterborough changes their mind?
Before signing, they can simply step back, and we see whether the scheme still works without their garden. After signing, the agreements decide what happens, and they usually bind whoever owns the house next. Your solicitor will check those clauses carefully.
Will Peterborough City Council prefer a combined scheme to single plots in Peterborough?
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.
Can neighbours in Peterborough 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. Peterborough City Council decides any planning application on its merits.
Do we each need a solicitor for a combined scheme in Peterborough?
Yes. Each owner has different interests, a different title and possibly a mortgage, so each needs independent advice. On option and promotion agreements we cover each owner’s reasonable legal fees up to the cap agreed in the heads of terms.
Other options in Peterborough
- Build a new home in your garden
- Garage courts and yards
- Joint venture on your garden plot
- Sell part of your garden
- Corner and side plots
- Sell subject to planning