How do I make sure my Garden Room is compliant with the latest regulations if I am building close to the boundary?

My property is listed or located in an area of outstanding natural beauty

Listed buildings, national parks and areas of outstanding natural beauty have different rules and regulations and therefore permitted development does not apply in the same way as it does in standard areas, so people living here must seek additional permissions.

I want to add a home office or garden room to my front garden

Unfortunately, outbuildings cannot be added forward of the principal elevation of the original house under permitted development, and must not exceed 50% of the total area of land around the original house. The term ‘original house’ means the house as it was first built or as it stood on 1 July 1948 (if it was built before that date). Be aware that the total area of all extensions, sheds and outbuildings – including your proposed garden room –  must not cover more than 50% of the total area of land around your house.

My proposed garden outbuilding is under 15 sqm 

If you want to put up small detached buildings such as a garden shed or summerhouse in your garden, building regulations will not normally apply if the floor area of the building is less than 15 square metres internal floor space and contains no sleeping accommodation. When considering your cladding, choose a sensible product which offers some defensive fire properties such as our Class B fire rated Dura Cladding Flush Resist which is made from hardwearing composite timber.  Remember too that if you are running electrics to your garden office, these will definitely need to comply with Building Regulations – check out part P and consult your electrician to find out what you’ll need to do.

My planned outbuilding is larger than 15 sqm

If the floor area of the building is between 15 square metres and 30 square metres, you will not normally be required to apply for building regulations approval, providing that the building contains NO sleeping accommodation and is either at least one metre away from any boundary or it is constructed substantially of non-combustible materials. Non-combustible means that a material is resistant to combustion as determined by an appropriate test procedure. Garden office buildings over 30 square metres will always need to be Building Regulation compliant.

I want to locate my garden room within 1 metre of my property boundary

If your garden room is within 1 metre of the property boundary and is less than or equal to 30 sqm, then the materials used must be mainly non-combustible. That means they should be for example, brick, block, or concrete walls, or a steel frame with metal cladding with a non-combustible fire rating, such as our powder coated Dura Cladding Aluminium.

If you are still unsure if planning permission or building control is required, please contact your local planning authority or call our specialist team.