- Planning authority
- Buckinghamshire Council
- Postcodes
- SL9
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 38°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.3 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Buckinghamshire
Gerrards Cross: light, access and policy
Neighbours in SL9 will receive notice of any application on your plot, and some will comment. Buckinghamshire Council weighs those comments against planning policy rather than counting them, but a scheme that answers obvious worries about privacy, light and traffic before they are raised usually fares better.
Because you will still be living next door, we agree with you how and when neighbours hear about the plans. Some sellers prefer to speak to adjoining owners themselves before the application goes in; others leave it to the formal notice.
What happens next in Gerrards Cross
From first enquiry to exchange of contracts usually takes a few months, set mainly by the solicitors and any title questions. The planning stage then runs on its own timetable, depending on surveys and on Buckinghamshire Council. We keep you updated throughout, share the drawings before submission and tell you as soon as a decision is issued.
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.
Heads of terms
We set out the price or price formula, what counts as satisfactory permission, the long-stop date, how any planning costs are treated and who pays which fees. You see all of it before instructing a solicitor.
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.
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
- Once contracts are exchanged you are committed to sell if a satisfactory permission is granted.
- The definition of satisfactory permission and the long-stop date decide how certain the sale really is; read both closely.
- The plot can’t be sold to anyone else while the contract runs, even if another offer comes along.
Questions about garden plots in Gerrards Cross
Who decides the planning application on a conditional sale in Gerrards Cross?
That is Buckinghamshire 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.
Will my neighbours in Gerrards Cross be told about the application?
Yes. Buckinghamshire Council publicises applications through letters to neighbours, a site notice, or both, depending on its practice. Neighbours can comment, and the council weighs their views against planning policy. You can choose whether to speak to adjoining owners before the application goes in, and we’ll fit in with what you prefer.
Is a sale subject to planning in Gerrards Cross better than an option?
It depends on the plot. A conditional sale binds both sides from exchange and suits a single plot with a clear scheme. An option gives us a right to buy rather than an obligation, and suits plots where the outcome is less certain or the timescale is longer. We’ll recommend one after the appraisal.
Do I pay for the planning application on my Gerrards Cross 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 Gerrards Cross
- Plot feasibility and design
- Build a new home in your garden
- Sell part of your garden
- Corner and side plots
- Planning promotion for your garden plot
- Planning permission for a garden plot