- Planning authority
- Westmorland and Furness Council
- Postcodes
- LA15
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 36°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.9 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Cumbria
What the council will look at in Dalton-in-Furness
Shadow is one reason combined gardens in Dalton-in-Furness often work better. On 21 March the midday sun reaches roughly 36°, enough for a 5 m eaves line to shade about 6.9 m of ground, and by midwinter, at about 12°, the shade runs much further.
On one narrow garden, a new home can end up close to the houses on every side. On a combined site, the new homes can sit towards the middle, with gardens around them, and the shadows they cast fall mostly on their own land.
How we’d take it forward in Dalton-in-Furness
Once the group is interested, we meet the owners, together or one by one, and set out the routes and how equalisation would work. Heads of terms follow. Each owner’s own solicitor reviews the collaboration agreement and the sale, option or promotion documents, and lenders are asked to consent early. Then the single application goes to Westmorland and Furness Council.
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.
Meet the neighbours
We meet the owners together or separately, explain how the scheme and the routes work, and answer questions. We don’t approach your neighbours without your agreement, and nobody is committed at this stage.
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.
Worth checking early
- Tax depends on each owner’s circumstances, so each should take advice from a tax adviser.
- Planning is still the council’s decision; a combined scheme is often stronger, but it can still be refused.
- Every owner’s mortgage lender, title and covenants have to be dealt with, and one problem can hold up everyone.
Your questions, answered for Dalton-in-Furness
Who pays for planning on combined gardens in Dalton-in-Furness?
It depends on the route. On a sale subject to planning, we normally fund the application. On planning promotion, nothing is paid upfront and costs are recovered from the proceeds only if a sale with planning happens. On an outright sale, we buy the land as it stands.
Does each Dalton-in-Furness 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.
Can neighbours in Dalton-in-Furness 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. Westmorland and Furness Council decides any planning application on its merits.
Will Westmorland and Furness Council prefer a combined scheme to single plots in Dalton-in-Furness?
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 Dalton-in-Furness
- Plot feasibility and design
- Planning permission for a garden plot
- Bungalows on large plots
- Build a new home in your garden
- Joint venture on your garden plot
- Corner and side plots