- Planning authority
- Thanet District Council
- Postcodes
- CT11
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 39°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.2 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Kent
The local picture in Ramsgate
A combined site in Ramsgate goes to Thanet District Council as one application, judged against the council’s Local Plan and national policy. The council will look at the scheme as a whole: whether one access is safe, whether the layout respects the pattern of the street and gardens around it, and whether every existing home keeps enough privacy, daylight and garden.
That’s a stronger position than several separate applications for single plots, each judged on its own and each with its own drive. It isn’t a guarantee, but it gives the council a scheme it can assess fairly.
The next steps, locally
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 Thanet District 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.
- Several owners have to agree, so a combined scheme usually takes longer to set up than a single plot.
- If the garden providing the access drops out before signing, the whole scheme may not work.
Your questions, answered for Ramsgate
Who pays for planning on combined gardens in Ramsgate?
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.
What if one neighbour in Ramsgate 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.
Can neighbours in Ramsgate 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. Thanet District Council decides any planning application on its merits.
Do we each need a solicitor for a combined scheme in Ramsgate?
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 Ramsgate
- Joint venture on your garden plot
- Planning permission for a garden plot
- Corner and side plots
- Large rear gardens
- Planning promotion for your garden plot
- Build a home for family in your garden