- Planning authority
- London Borough of Sutton
- Postcodes
- SM1, SM2, SM3, SM5, SM6
- 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 Sutton
On many backland plots, access matters more than size. A long garden in Sutton may have no route to the road wide enough for cars, bins and emergency vehicles, and the London Borough of Sutton will look closely at the effect of a new drive on the homes either side of it.
For homes in SM1, SM2, SM3 and SM5 we look at access first: the width beside the house, visibility at the pavement, and whether a strip of land owned by someone else sits in the way. If access only works by joining with a neighbour, we’ll say so, and promoting the combined site may be the better route.
The next steps, locally
Nothing is signed until you’ve seen the heads of terms and taken advice. Call us or use the form with your Sutton address, a rough idea of where the garden runs, and whether neighbours might join in. We’ll check the title, access and planning history first, then tell you plainly whether promotion, a sale subject to planning or another route suits your plot.
Free plot appraisal
We check your title plan, access, the surrounding gardens and the policies in the council’s Local Plan as a desktop exercise, then talk it through with you. If it looks viable, we visit. No cost and no obligation.
Agreement signed
Your solicitor and ours turn the heads of terms into a promotion agreement. It’s usually protected by an entry on your title, and if your house is mortgaged, your lender is asked to consent early.
Marketing and sale
With permission granted, the plot is marketed as the agreement sets out. You see the offers and approve the buyer, and the plot can’t be sold below the minimum price without your written consent.
Completion and payout
On completion, sale costs, our capped planning costs and our fee come out of the proceeds in the order the agreement sets. The balance is paid to you through your solicitor.
Worth checking early
- Promotion takes longer than a straight sale: planning, then marketing, then completion, and each stage can run on.
- The plot’s price isn’t known until it’s marketed with permission; it depends on location, size, access and the permission itself.
- On a single small plot, fixed costs and our fee take a bigger share of the sale price than on a larger site.
Sutton: questions to ask
How is a promoted garden plot in Sutton sold?
After permission, an agent agreed with you markets the plot to builders, developers and self-builders. You see the offers and approve the buyer. The plot can’t be sold below the agreed minimum price without your written consent, and any offer from us has to stand up against the open market.
What happens if planning is refused for my garden in Sutton?
You keep your land and owe nothing for planning, because our costs are only recovered from a sale with planning. Within the term we may revise the scheme and reapply, or appeal if the grounds are strong. If there’s no realistic route to permission, the agreement ends.
Who decides a planning application for a garden plot in Sutton?
The London Borough of Sutton decides it, using the council’s Local Plan and national policy in the NPPF. Nobody can promise the outcome. Under promotion we prepare and submit the application at our cost and deal with the council’s questions, but the decision is the council’s, and it can grant, refuse or ask for changes.
Can neighbours in Sutton combine gardens for a planning promotion?
Yes, and promotion often works better that way. Adjoining gardens can share one access and allow a better layout. Each owner keeps their house, signs an agreement setting out how proceeds are shared, and takes advice from their own solicitor. We can appraise the combined land as one site first.
Other options in Sutton
- Corner and side plots
- Combine gardens with your neighbours
- Planning permission for a garden plot
- Garage courts and yards
- Sell subject to planning
- Sell part of your garden