- Planning authority
- Charnwood Borough Council
- Postcodes
- LE12
- Noon sun, 21 March
- About 37°
- Shadow from a 5 m eaves line
- About 6.6 m
- Planning plan
- Local Plan
- County
- Leicestershire
What shapes a plot in Mountsorrel
Overshadowing is one of the first things a planning officer checks on a garden scheme. In Mountsorrel, the spring equinox sun reaches only about 37° at midday, which means a 5 m eaves line lays down a shadow around 6.6 m long. Come the shortest day, the sun climbs no higher than roughly 14° and the shade stretches far beyond that.
We model those shadows when we design the scheme, because a home that keeps light off your windows and the neighbours’ gardens is easier for Charnwood Borough Council to approve. Sometimes that means a lower roof or a home set further back.
What happens next in Mountsorrel
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 Charnwood Borough 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.
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.
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
- You wait for a planning decision, and possibly an appeal, before you are paid.
- The plot can’t be sold to anyone else while the contract runs, even if another offer comes along.
- The definition of satisfactory permission and the long-stop date decide how certain the sale really is; read both closely.
Your questions, answered for Mountsorrel
Is a sale subject to planning in Mountsorrel 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.
Who decides the planning application on a conditional sale in Mountsorrel?
That is Charnwood Borough 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.
What if I want to sell my Mountsorrel house during a conditional sale?
Tell us as early as you can. The conditional contract is noted on your title, so your house buyer’s solicitor will see it. The two sales can usually be arranged together, but the order matters for the legal work and possibly for Capital Gains Tax, so take advice from a tax adviser too.
Do I keep my garden in Mountsorrel 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.
Other options in Mountsorrel
- Garden plot option agreement
- Large rear gardens
- Bungalows on large plots
- Combine gardens with your neighbours
- Corner and side plots
- Build a home for family in your garden

