Combine back gardens with your neighbours in Hartshill

A shared access road is often what makes backland homes possible in Hartshill. Instead of several narrow drives, one properly designed road with good visibility at the pavement can serve every new home on the combined land, keep cars further from existing windows and give bin lorries and emergency vehicles the room they need.

The household providing that access gives up the most, so an equalisation agreement usually gives them an extra agreed share. Every owner keeps their house and an agreed garden, and the planning application to North Warwickshire Borough Council covers the whole site at once rather than plot by plot.

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 Warwickshire Borough Council
Postcodes
CV10
Noon sun, 21 March
About 37°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.5 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Warwickshire

The local picture in Hartshill

Shadow is one reason combined gardens in Hartshill often work better. On 21 March the midday sun reaches roughly 37°, enough for a 5 m eaves line to shade about 6.5 m of ground, and by midwinter, at about 14°, 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.

Section showing noon sun and shadows in Hartshill: about 37 degrees on 21 March and 14 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 37°, shadow 6.5 m21 Dec, noon: sun 14°, shadow 20.0 mExistingNew home
Noon sun in Hartshill on 21 March sits about 37° above the horizon, so a typical two-storey eaves line (about 5 m) throws a shadow of roughly 6.5 m. In December the sun is only about 14° up and shadows stretch much further. Drawn for a garden facing north, where it matters most.

From first call to decision

To start, send us the addresses of the gardens involved in Hartshill, 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.

  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. 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.

  3. 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.

  4. 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.

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.
  • 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.

Questions about garden plots in Hartshill

How many neighbours in Hartshill 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.

Does each Hartshill 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.

Will North Warwickshire Borough Council prefer a combined scheme to single plots in Hartshill?

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.

Who pays for planning on combined gardens in Hartshill?

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.

Other options in Hartshill

Combine neighbours’ gardens near Hartshill

Find out what your garden could become

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