Garage to Studio renovation

razamakaz

I’m having a nightmare getting any sort of answer from my council.  I have a detached garage.  It is at the end of my driveway but my house stops about six feet before my garage starts so it is back from the road. 

I want to turn my garage into an art studio. I need it internally insulated and boarded and the floor levelled etc.  No extending it or changing the size. 

It has a metal garage door but I want to swap the garage door with French or patio doors or alternatively brick it in completely and knock a door through the side of the garage so it is directly accessible from my garden. 

I’m coming across conflicting views on whether I need planning permission or building regs etc. The general consensus is that I don’t because my garage is not on the street level with my house. Others say I do as I’m changing the use of the garage even though it’s just a studio, I won’t be living in it. It’s not being changed in size at all but the council want me to fill in a form and pay £120 just to ask the question and the form is irrelevant to my question anyway.  I just can’t get an answer. 

Can anyone help?  Thank you x 

gwynlas

You will need to satisfy building control regarding levels of insulation, electrical installation fire safety etc, this can be done by the council themselves or a 3rd party acting on behalf of you and the council who will inspect at stages and issue a certificate on completion,. Either way you will have to pay, I had to pay £110 to ask about a dropped kerb. A lot of people get these sort of jobs done without considering building regs but them have problems with either a less comfortable/useable space or problens with ubregulated work on selling. If having french doors comsider installing opening windows in side panels, Mine were an after thought and cost extra

twopenny

Have a read about Permitted Development Rights because this will give you more idea. Unfortunately it doesn't mention detached garages but you should be able to find something on that.

https://www.homebuilding.co.uk/advice/permitted-development-rights-guide

You'll still need to check with your council that this is so and dependent on the area you live in ie Not a conservation area, which part of the UK etc.

I sympathise with your difficulty in getting an answer from the council. I worked in planning briefly for a NP but the council never answered any of the questions I was asking even though I had the lingo and contacts

Homer_home

I would keep the garage door where it is and install a stud wall behind it and knock through a door onto your garden 

That way if you sell in the future the new owners have options to easily put it back into a garage with the added bonus of a side door

Do you own the garage?

DevilDamo

The Planning (PD) situation will depend if your property has PD rights, which would be listed on an original Planning approval. If you do have those rights, Planning and PD would normally be determined on the size of the ‘outbuilding’ in addition to its proximity to a boundary.

You’d only normally require BR’s for converting an integral or attached garage, but not those that are detached. The only time BR’s would apply to detached garages/outbuildings is if their resulting internal floor area would exceed 30sq.m.

Petriix

The default answer is that it shouldn't require either planning permission or building regs. However, if any part of the garage is forward of the principle elevation of the house then changing its external appearance would require planning permission. Also any electrical work will need building regs as usual.

In practice, I would keep the external appearance the same (at least from the front) and not worry about it. As long as you don't do anything dangerous and you properly insulate it then you will basically be conforming to the regs anyway.

razamakaz

Ok. Had a chat with builder.  There is already electricity in the garage so that’s fine. We have decided to keep garage door and do an insulated removable wall inside of it so it can be turned back to to a garage if future buyers want that. 

I have a single side door already that goes out onto the garden so he is going to extend that opening to accommodate French doors. 

And yes I own the garage as part of my property. 

I guess I would be ok with no BR or PP in this scenario?  Unless anyone can think of anything else?

Thank you so much for all of your comments. 

Homer_home

Perfect , time to crack on!

Doozergirl

I don't see anything wrong with that. 

Enjoy! 

Belenus

razamakaz said:

Ok. Had a chat with builder.  There is already electricity in the garage so that’s fine. We have decided to keep garage door and do an insulated removable wall inside of it so it can be turned back to to a garage if future buyers want that. 

I have a single side door already that goes out onto the garden so he is going to extend that opening to accommodate French doors. 

And yes I own the garage as part of my property. 

I guess I would be ok with no BR or PP in this scenario?  Unless anyone can think of anything else?

Thank you so much for all of your comments. 

Is it an up and over garage door? If it is, then the removable wall will have to be set far enough into the garage to accommodate the garage door when open so you will lose several feet. Any closer and you won't be able to open the garage door. Are you prepared to lose that space or will you change the garage door to one that doesn't involve the door going into the garage?

We have just converted our integrated (not separate like yours) garage. We had a stud partition wall built about a third of the way into the garage as we wanted to keep the front third for storing bicycles etc. The rear two thirds is now a non habitable room (it has no window) that we use for dry storage. It is accessed via the existing door into the main house.

razamakaz

No the inside wall will be close to the door. I don’t want to be able to open it just have it as looking like a garage door from the outside.  I have a small garage and can’t afford to lose the amount of room required to be able to still open it.  The builder said he can secure it and the inside wall will be removable should a future buyer want it back as a garage.