Backland Development
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Combine back gardens with your neighbours in Stockwood

A shared access road is often what makes backland homes possible in Stockwood. Instead of several narrow drives, one properly designed road with good visibility at the pavement can serve every new home on the combined land, keep cars further from existing windows and give bin lorries and emergency vehicles the room they need.

The household providing that access gives up the most, so an equalisation agreement usually gives them an extra agreed share. Every owner keeps their house and an agreed garden, and the planning application to Bristol City Council covers the whole site at once rather than plot by plot.

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Aerial view of a row of semi-detached houses whose garden ends have been combined into one plot with a new access
Planning authority
Bristol City Council
Postcodes
BS14
Noon sun, 21 March
About 39°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.3 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Bristol

What the council will look at in Stockwood

Overlooking decides many garden schemes in Stockwood. With the noon sun at about 39° in late March, when a 5 m eaves line casts shade around 6.3 m deep, and with back windows facing in several directions, space matters.

On a combined site there’s room to turn the new homes, use single-storey elements near boundaries, and keep upstairs windows away from neighbours. Many councils use separation guides of around 21 metres between facing back windows, and around 12 to 15 metres from a back window to a blank side wall. Bristol City Council’s own guide decides.

Section showing noon sun and shadows in Stockwood: about 39 degrees on 21 March and 15 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 39°, shadow 6.3 m21 Dec, noon: sun 15°, shadow 18.5 mExistingNew home
Noon sun in Stockwood on 21 March sits about 39° above the horizon, so a typical two-storey eaves line (about 5 m) throws a shadow of roughly 6.3 m. In December the sun is only about 15° up and shadows stretch much further. Drawn for a garden facing north, where it matters most.

What happens next in Stockwood

The steps for neighbours in Stockwood 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.

  1. 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.

  2. 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.

  3. 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.

  4. 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.
  • Tax depends on each owner’s circumstances, so each should take advice from a tax adviser.
  • If the garden providing the access drops out before signing, the whole scheme may not work.

Stockwood: questions to ask

Do we each need a solicitor for a combined scheme in Stockwood?

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.

Can neighbours in Stockwood 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. Bristol City Council decides any planning application on its merits.

Will Bristol City Council prefer a combined scheme to single plots in Stockwood?

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.

What if one neighbour in Stockwood 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.

Other options in Stockwood

Combine neighbours’ gardens near Stockwood

Find out what your garden could become

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