- Planning authority
- Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council
- Postcodes
- B90
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 38°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.5 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- West Midlands
The local picture in Shirley
At noon on 21 March the sun over Shirley sits about 38° above the horizon, so a two-storey eaves line around 5 m high casts a shadow of roughly 6.5 m. By 21 December, with the sun at about 14°, that shadow is far longer. Solihull Metropolitan Borough 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.
What happens next in Shirley
Nothing is signed until you’ve seen the heads of terms and taken advice. Call us or use the form with your Shirley 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.
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.
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.
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.
Worth checking early
- You can’t sell the plot to anyone else while the agreement runs, so the term length matters.
- You’ll live next to whatever is built, so the layout, windows and new boundary affect your house too.
- Planning may be refused. You keep your land and owe nothing for planning, but the months spent can’t be given back.
Questions about garden plots in Shirley
Who decides a planning application for a garden plot in Shirley?
Solihull Metropolitan Borough 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.
Can you look at my garden in Shirley 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.
What happens if planning is refused for my garden in Shirley?
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.
How long does planning promotion take for a garden in Shirley?
It usually takes longer than a straight sale. Design and surveys often take a few months, then Solihull Metropolitan Borough 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.
Other options in Shirley
- Plot feasibility and design
- Sell subject to planning
- Build a home for family in your garden
- Build a new home in your garden
- Planning permission for a garden plot
- Joint venture on your garden plot

