- Planning authority
- London Borough of Wandsworth
- Postcodes
- SW11, SW15, SW17, SW18
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 39°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.3 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Greater London
The local picture in Wandsworth
Shadow is one reason combined gardens in Wandsworth often work better. On 21 March the midday sun reaches roughly 39°, enough for a 5 m eaves line to shade about 6.3 m of ground, and by midwinter, at about 15°, 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 Wandsworth
To start, send us the addresses of the gardens involved in Wandsworth, 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.
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.
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
- 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.
- Every owner’s mortgage lender, title and covenants have to be dealt with, and one problem can hold up everyone.
Questions about garden plots in Wandsworth
Do we each need a solicitor for a combined scheme in Wandsworth?
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.
What if one neighbour in Wandsworth 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.
How many neighbours in Wandsworth 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.
Who gets more if one garden in Wandsworth provides the access?
Usually the owner of the access garden receives an extra agreed share, because their land makes the scheme possible and their house is most affected by passing cars. The exact method is agreed by everyone in the collaboration agreement before planning starts.
Other options in Wandsworth
- Plot feasibility and design
- Garage courts and yards
- Tandem and landlocked plots
- Sell subject to planning
- Build a new home in your garden
- Planning permission for a garden plot