Combine back gardens with your neighbours in Whitby

Helping neighbours in Whitby combine their gardens is one of the routes offered by Backland Development, a new brand within the S&K Group. It suits streets where the land behind the houses is generous but access is limited, and where the neighbours would rather share one good scheme than compete with several poor ones.

We appraise the combined land, meet the owners if they want us to, and set out the routes: a sale, a sale subject to planning, an option, promotion or a joint venture. The collaboration agreement then ties it all together, and each owner’s solicitor checks it before anyone signs.

Aerial view of a row of semi-detached houses whose garden ends have been combined into one plot with a new access
Planning authority
North Yorkshire Council
Postcodes
YO22
Noon sun, 21 March
About 36°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 7.0 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
North Yorkshire

What the council will look at in Whitby

A combined scheme in Whitby has a wider pool of buyers than a single plot. Once the land has planning, it can be offered to builders and developers working in Whitby and nearby places such as Scarborough, Guisborough and Redcar, or further afield, who are often more interested in a site for several homes than in one small plot.

If the neighbours choose a sale with planning, the collaboration agreement sets out how a buyer is agreed. If we buy the site, the price is set by the route chosen. Value depends on location, size, access and the permission North Yorkshire Council grants, so we don’t quote figures before an appraisal.

Section showing noon sun and shadows in Whitby: about 36 degrees on 21 March and 12 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 36°, shadow 7.0 m21 Dec, noon: sun 12°, shadow 23.4 mExistingNew home
Noon sun in Whitby on 21 March sits about 36° above the horizon, so a typical two-storey eaves line (about 5 m) throws a shadow of roughly 7.0 m. In December the sun is only about 12° up and shadows stretch much further. Drawn for a garden facing north, where it matters most.

The next steps, locally

Nothing happens without every owner’s agreement. If you’re in Whitby and think the gardens on your side of the street could work together, call us or use the form. We’ll look at the land first, tell you plainly whether it’s worth pursuing, and only then discuss approaching the other owners, with your say-so and in the way you prefer.

  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

  • 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.
  • The owner of the access garden will live beside a shared road, which is why that garden often receives an extra share.

Questions about garden plots in Whitby

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

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.

Who gets more if one garden in Whitby 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.

Who pays for planning on combined gardens in Whitby?

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.

How many neighbours in Whitby 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.

Other options in Whitby

Combine neighbours’ gardens near Whitby

Find out what your garden could become

Free garden plot appraisal. No cost, no obligation, and a straight answer if it won’t work.