- Planning authority
- Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council
- Postcodes
- L29, L31
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 36°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.8 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Merseyside
What the council will look at in Maghull
Back gardens in L29 and L31, as anywhere, tend to be divided by fences, hedges and the odd tree, and a combined scheme has to work with all of them. Old boundary hedges may be habitat worth keeping, and mature trees may need an assessment before anything is designed.
We map these features across all the gardens at once, so the layout keeps what matters and the application to Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council shows how trees and wildlife have been considered. Doing it across the whole site is simpler and cheaper than doing it garden by garden.
How we’d take it forward in Maghull
The steps for neighbours in Maghull 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.
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
- The owner of the access garden will live beside a shared road, which is why that garden often receives an extra share.
- Planning is still the council’s decision; a combined scheme is often stronger, but it can still be refused.
- If the garden providing the access drops out before signing, the whole scheme may not work.
Your questions, answered for Maghull
Does each Maghull 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.
Who gets more if one garden in Maghull 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.
Can neighbours in Maghull 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. Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council decides any planning application on its merits.
What if one neighbour in Maghull 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 Maghull
- Sell subject to planning
- Build a new home in your garden
- Garage courts and yards
- Bungalows on large plots
- Joint venture on your garden plot
- Tandem and landlocked plots