Outhouse/sleepout for a teenager

Diamonds_2

We bought our house as a short term thing but with house prices/job situation/negative equity, we're stuck here for the time being and we're getting too big for this house!!:o

Our eldest could do with some room of his own and we were thinking about building a brick outhouse in our garden (not attached to the house) for him (which would serve as a bedroom/living space for him).

Has anyone thought about this/done this? I am going to ring the council but wanted to put out the feelers before doing so (just in case there are some do's and don'ts).


Debbie.

lagaaa

Only knowledge I have of this is friend of a friend who built pirate ship construction in garden without planning permission and it was too high so had to take it down as should have got planning permission..goodness knows how big it was!

phill99

I run a Maintenance Company. About 5 years ago, a customer was in a similar situation to you. They had a mid terrace house with a double garage at the end of the back garden. To cut a long story short, we converted the garage into a studio living space with its own shower room. This involved putting a larger window and uPVC door in (garden side). We insulated and lined the walls, insulated and lined the ceiling, put in spotlights, built a large walk in wardrobe, built an ensuite shower room, decorated etc. All services came from the house so we had to run armoured cable down the garden, water and waste (we put in a saniflo to pump it the length of the garden). The teenage lad who used it effectively had his own studio flat, built without a kitchen. It can be done, but if you haven't got an existing structure to convert, it may be expensive.

Owain_Moneysaver

You will need planning permission for a building as well as having to build to full Building Regulations.

You may not need planning permission for a static caravan. Some of these can look quite like buildings (usually log cabins).

warehouse

If the building is less than 4 meters tall and more than 20 meters away from a major road then I don't think you do need permission.

Diamonds_2

warehouse wrote: »

If the building is less than 4 meters tall and more than 20 meters away from a major road then I don't think you do need permission.

What makes you say that?

(ours def would be less than 4 meters tall, and more than 20 meters away)

Diamonds_2

phill99 wrote: »

I run a Maintenance Company. About 5 years ago, a customer was in a similar situation to you. They had a mid terrace house with a double garage at the end of the back garden. To cut a long story short, we converted the garage into a studio living space with its own shower room. This involved putting a larger window and uPVC door in (garden side). We insulated and lined the walls, insulated and lined the ceiling, put in spotlights, built a large walk in wardrobe, built an ensuite shower room, decorated etc. All services came from the house so we had to run armoured cable down the garden, water and waste (we put in a saniflo to pump it the length of the garden). The teenage lad who used it effectively had his own studio flat, built without a kitchen. It can be done, but if you haven't got an existing structure to convert, it may be expensive.

Sounds fab, how much did it cost them do you know? I don't think we would go so far with the shower but would prob want a toilet/sink .... lots to think about, thankyou for your post.

warehouse

Diamonds wrote: »

What makes you say that?

(ours def would be less than 4 meters tall, and more than 20 meters away)

My current garden backs on to a canal and I want to put a playhouse type structure down there somewhere. I spoke to the council and they told me that the canal was classed as a major highway so I couldn't build within 20 meters of it without planning permission.

In my previous house the neighbours put an outhouse at the bottom of their garden and informed me that under 4 meters tall and over x amount of meters from the main house didn't require planning permission, I never checked this out.

Given the above, I'm also pretty sure that a wooden structure would not count as "permanent", so could be put anywhere.

WillowCat

There are exemptions from building regulations for outhouses less than certain sizes, with certain types of construction.

However you cannot have sleeping accommodation in an outhouse - if you are planning a bedroom then full building regulations approval will be required, and possibly planning too.

Could you not build him a cabin to chill out during the day/evenings, then have him sleep in the house? It would make it much easier from a regulations point of view.

WillowCat

warehouse wrote: »

Given the above, I'm also pretty sure that a wooden structure would not count as "permanent", so could be put anywhere.

Permanent in this context means over 28 days - for example a marquee put up for a party would be temporary.

It doesn't matter what the building is made of - wood can last for decades - it's the intent on whether it will be erected for 28 days or more.

Diamonds_2

All the houses on our close each have an area allocated to build a garage..(a plot of land which is actually at the side of our house as ours is the end house) the previous owners of our house have incorporated their (our) area into our garden and it's fenced off. No garage has been built. I thought about building a 'garage' (brick) and having it as a sleepout for my son to give him some space. Obviously it would be done properly with proper insulation etc. but just wanted to hear if anyone had done this and what do I say to the council.. do I have to tell them that it would be used for sleeping in? or do they only need to know that a brick 'garage' is being built or whether they have to know anything at all seeing as this area is down as a plot for a garage in the first place if you know what i mean?