Challenge
Lots of people like the idea of building a house in the back of their garden. Because it can make them money, or because they would like somewhere for family members to live without having to buy a whole new property, or maybe because they love the location but want a smaller house.
Councils’ attitudes towards people doing this vary massively: some councils encourage it, others are firmly against it, and some sit in between. In most cases, neighbours will object to the idea on principle, so you need to be able to both reassure them when you can and demonstrate to the local authority that they are taking an unjustified position when you can’t.
In this case, we were taken on after a previous attempt to get permission on the site had stalled. The task was to come up with a design that made the most of a very small space and respected both the neighbours’ and the future occupants’ right to light and privacy.
There was also a twist: while a common problem with garden developments is a lack of access, here we were replacing a garage so there was an existing entrance from the road… but the council didn’t think it was safe for cars to go in and out of.