Backland Development
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Planning promotion for garden plots in Westminster

Two or three neighbouring back gardens in Westminster can make a stronger promotion site than one garden on its own. Put together, they may allow one shared access, a better layout and new homes set further from existing windows, and the fixed costs of the application are spread across a bigger scheme.

That is where promotion is most at home. For a single garden it can still work, particularly if the plot is generous and has its own route in from the road, but we’ll tell you honestly if a sale subject to planning or an option suits your land better. The free appraisal covers that question.

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White architectural model of a house at the front of a plot with two new homes at the end of the garden
Planning authority
Westminster City Council
Postcodes
NW8, SW1X, W1H, W1M, W2
Noon sun, 21 March
About 38°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.3 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Greater London

What the council will look at in Westminster

At noon on 21 March the sun over Westminster sits about 38° above the horizon, so a two-storey eaves line around 5 m high casts a shadow of roughly 6.3 m. By 21 December, with the sun at about 15°, that shadow is far longer. Westminster City Council will weigh how a new home affects daylight and sunlight to your house and the gardens next door.

Under promotion we test this before applying, because a refusal on overshadowing costs time even though it doesn’t cost you money. Moving the new home, lowering the eaves or turning the roof can make the difference.

Section showing noon sun and shadows in Westminster: about 38 degrees on 21 March and 15 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 38°, shadow 6.3 m21 Dec, noon: sun 15°, shadow 18.6 mExistingNew home
Noon sun in Westminster on 21 March sits about 38° above the horizon, so a typical two-storey eaves line (about 5 m) throws a shadow of roughly 6.3 m. In December the sun is only about 15° up and shadows stretch much further. Drawn for a garden facing north, where it matters most.

How we’d take it forward in Westminster

Nothing is signed until you’ve seen the heads of terms and taken advice. Call us or use the form with your Westminster 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.

  1. 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.

  2. Heads of terms

    We set out the deal in writing: the term, how our fee works, the cap on planning costs we can recover, the minimum price, the marketing approach and the cap on your reasonable legal fees that we cover.

  3. We apply for planning

    We commission the surveys and drawings, take pre-application advice where it helps, submit the application and deal with the council’s questions. You pay nothing at this stage, and the decision is the council’s.

  4. 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.

Worth checking early

  • Planning may be refused. You keep your land and owe nothing for planning, but the months spent can’t be given back.
  • You’ll live next to whatever is built, so the layout, windows and new boundary affect your house too.
  • You can’t sell the plot to anyone else while the agreement runs, so the term length matters.

Westminster: questions to ask

How long does planning promotion take for a garden in Westminster?

It usually takes longer than a straight sale. Design and surveys often take a few months, then Westminster City Council needs time to decide, and marketing and conveyancing follow. The council’s workload, extra reports and any appeal drive the timing, so we give a realistic range after the appraisal.

Who decides a planning application for a garden plot in Westminster?

Westminster City Council 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.

Do I pay anything upfront for planning promotion in Westminster?

No. We fund the surveys, drawings and planning fees. Those costs are recovered from the sale proceeds, within a cap set in the heads of terms, only if a sale with planning happens. Your reasonable legal fees for the agreement are also covered up to an agreed cap.

Can you look at my garden in Westminster before I commit to anything?

Yes. The plot appraisal is free and carries no obligation. We start with a desktop check of your title, access and the planning policies that apply, then talk it through with you. If the plot looks viable, we arrange a site visit before any heads of terms are drafted.

Other options in Westminster

Planning promotion near Westminster

Find out what your garden could become

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

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