Garden Fence-anyone know height restrictions?

mummyyummy_2

we are building a recycled fence this weekend, but unsure of height restrictions..it is our back garden, but we are an end house. The council say that because we are "near the road" i.e. we are up 10 steps away from road and its all houses around us, the road leads away from the house so we are in NO WAY blocking any road views from a car, anyway the council say its usual to allow 6ft in a back garden, but only 5ft for us. I cant understand it, i could see their point if we were even on road level or near a road, but we are not. Anyone have any ideas? Many thanks

navig8r

mummyyummy wrote: »

we are building a recycled fence this weekend, but unsure of height restrictions..it is our back garden, but we are an end house. The council say that because we are "near the road" i.e. we are up 10 steps away from road and its all houses around us, the road leads away from the house so we are in NO WAY blocking any road views from a car, anyway the council say its usual to allow 6ft in a back garden, but only 5ft for us. I cant understand it, i could see their point if we were even on road level or near a road, but we are not. Anyone have any ideas? Many thanks

You have to go with the height of whoever makes the rules I'm afraid no matter what anyone says here .

Dave

BUBBLES_3

Ring your local council and ask for Building control. They will give you the 'rules' there are special rules if you are on a main road or have a public footpath by your property. Once you ask though you must do what they say cause you cannot then plead ignorance if they check it out.

floyd

It doesn't matter if its a main road, side road or dirt track, if its public access the rule stands. We had to apply for planning permission for ours, we were allowed up to 6 feet high until 12 feet from the corner (we are corner plot with both roads being minor/dead ends) then it had to drop to 3 feet.
Its ridiculous because the fence replaced an 8 foot high privet hedge that prevented anyone being able to see round the corner so to have to pay to apply for planning permission was a bit of a kick in the teeth

mrtsbrother

floyd wrote: »

It doesn't matter if its a main road, side road or dirt track, if its public access the rule stands. We had to apply for planning permission for ours, we were allowed up to 6 feet high until 12 feet from the corner (we are corner plot with both roads being minor/dead ends) then it had to drop to 3 feet.
Its ridiculous because the fence replaced an 8 foot high privet hedge that prevented anyone being able to see round the corner so to have to pay to apply for planning permission was a bit of a kick in the teeth

Not quite true! you are allowed 1 metre adjacent to a public highway and up to 2 metres elsewhere. The rule of thumb in the council I work for is that you need to be 1m away from the road to go up to 2m

Thats unless you are covered by an article 3 designation (unlikely) or its within the curtiledge of a listed building.

Nick

Debt_Free_Chick

mummyyummy wrote: »

I cant understand it, i could see their point if we were even on road level or near a road, but we are not. Anyone have any ideas? Many thanks

As mrtsbrother suggests, ask the local planning authority (usually the District or Borough Council's planning department) to confirm the rules that apply to your property.

You may need to apply for planning permission and this process will involve the County Council Highways' Department if you are "near" to a road or other public access.

floyd

mrtsbrother wrote: »

Not quite true! you are allowed 1 metre adjacent to a public highway and up to 2 metres elsewhere. The rule of thumb in the council I work for is that you need to be 1m away from the road to go up to 2m

Thats unless you are covered by an article 3 designation (unlikely) or its within the curtiledge of a listed building.

Nick

I work in old money so the 3 feet high we were allowed without planning at the front and corner is near enough a meter and the 6 feet we had to apply for at the side is near 2m. Fence panels and wood still come in feet and inches so thats how I work

rizla01

And don't forget that you have the right to appeal any decision.

If you feel that the Council are being unfair, call your local councillor. They sometimes have a bit of sway.

mummyyummy_2

thanks to everyone..it was the local clerk of works who said my fence had to be lower, but there are houses much nearer the road all around this area with higher back fences so seems a bit unfair..unless its a new law and they're old fences!!

planning_officer

mrtsbrother wrote: »

The rule of thumb in the council I work for is that you need to be 1m away from the road to go up to 2m

Thats unless you are covered by an article 3 designation.

Nick

The Council I work for also had the same rule of thumb until about a year ago, when our Head of Legal Services investigated it and found there was no supporting case law! So, technically you can go right up the road at 2m height (at right angles to the road, not along it!). Unless you're obstructing a visibility splay for a development required to be maintained by a planning condition...

And I presume you mean Article 4...:cool:

John_Pierpoint

What is article 3/4 in a nutshell?