Backland Development
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Sell your garden plot subject to planning in Sandhurst

Planning is the biggest unknown on any garden plot in Sandhurst, and a conditional contract is a way of sharing it fairly. We take on the cost and work of the application, normally funding it ourselves. You take on the wait. If the council approves a scheme that meets the agreed definition, we complete at the agreed price; if it doesn’t, you still own the land.

That balance suits plots where a sensible scheme is visible from the start. It suits less well where access is doubtful or a neighbour’s land is needed, and we’ll tell you if yours falls into that group.

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Site plan and house elevation drawings on a kitchen table with the back garden beyond the window
Planning authority
Bracknell Forest Council
Postcodes
GU47
Noon sun, 21 March
About 39°
Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
About 6.3 m
Planning plan
Local Plan
County
Berkshire

Sandhurst: light, access and policy

On a conditional sale, the contract defines what kind of permission triggers completion. In Sandhurst, that definition has to reflect what Bracknell Forest Council is likely to ask for: access standards, parking, perhaps biodiversity net gain rules, and possibly a contribution or the Community Infrastructure Levy if the council charges it.

Getting this right protects both sides. Set too tightly, a sound permission might not count; too loosely, you could be held to a sale on terms nobody expected. We draft it around the council’s Local Plan and explain every limb of it before you sign.

Section showing noon sun and shadows in Sandhurst: about 39 degrees on 21 March and 15 degrees on 21 December21 m21 Mar, noon: sun 39°, shadow 6.3 m21 Dec, noon: sun 15°, shadow 18.4 mExistingNew home
Noon sun in Sandhurst on 21 March sits about 39° 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 Sandhurst

Here is what to expect in Sandhurst. First a phone call, then a desk check of the title and the council’s Local Plan, then a visit if the plot looks promising. If we both want to go ahead, heads of terms set out what we would agree, without obligation, before solicitors draft the conditional contract. The appraisal costs nothing.

  1. Free plot appraisal

    We check your title, access, planning history and local policy from our desk, then talk it through with you. If a new home looks realistic, we visit the garden and tell you which route we think suits it best.

  2. Exchange of conditional contracts

    Both solicitors agree the contract and the plan of the plot. On exchange, both sides are bound, subject to the planning condition, and our contract is noted on your title so the plot can’t be sold elsewhere.

  3. Planning application

    We commission the surveys, prepare the drawings, seek pre-application advice where useful and submit the application, normally at our cost. You see the plans before they go in, and the council makes the decision.

  4. Completion, or you keep your land

    Once a satisfactory permission is granted and any challenge period has passed, the sale completes within the agreed time and the plot gets its own title. If permission is refused and the contract ends, the land stays yours.

Worth checking early

  • Capital Gains Tax timing on a conditional sale can differ from an ordinary sale; take advice from a tax adviser.
  • Once contracts are exchanged you are committed to sell if a satisfactory permission is granted.
  • You wait for a planning decision, and possibly an appeal, before you are paid.

Sandhurst: questions to ask

Do I keep my garden in Sandhurst if planning is refused?

Yes. Nothing is transferred until a satisfactory permission is granted, so a refusal leaves the land in your ownership. Depending on the contract, we may revise the scheme and reapply, or appeal, before the long-stop date. If that doesn’t succeed, the contract ends and our notice comes off your title.

How long might a sale subject to planning take in Sandhurst?

It usually runs for months, sometimes longer. Exchange often takes a few months; surveys and drawings take a few more; and the Planning Portal says most applications are decided within eight weeks of being valid, though garden schemes can take longer. The long-stop date sets the outer limit, agreed with you at the start.

Who decides the planning application on a conditional sale in Sandhurst?

That is Bracknell Forest Council’s decision as the local planning authority, made under the council’s Local Plan and the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF). We prepare the application, submit it and answer the council’s questions, but the outcome isn’t ours to control. That’s why the contract has a long-stop date and says what happens if permission is refused.

Do I pay for the planning application on my Sandhurst garden plot?

We normally fund the planning application, including surveys and drawings. Any recovery of those costs is agreed in heads of terms before you sign, for example as a deduction from the price at completion. You see the full position before instructing a solicitor, so there are no surprises later.

Other options in Sandhurst

Subject to planning near Sandhurst

Find out what your garden could become

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