Garden Room Attached to the House
Published: 21 March 2025
Reading Time: 3 minutes 30 seconds
Many homeowners wonder if a garden room can be attached to their house, much like a conservatory or extension. The answer is yes—if you work with the right company. While most garden rooms are standalone structures, a small number of companies specialise in integrating their designs with existing homes. Cosy Garden Rooms is one such company, offering bespoke solutions that seamlessly blend with the main house.
This recent project in Nottinghamshire is a great example of how a garden room can be attached to a house while adapting to a challenging site. The client wanted to create an insulated storage room at the side of their property, but the chosen location presented a significant slope. Cosy Garden Rooms designed a 5.6m x 1.6m garden room that follows the gradient of the site, ensuring a level, practical space that meets the homeowner’s needs.
A Thoughtfully Designed Split-Level Building
One of the key challenges of this project was the sloping ground. To address this, Cosy Garden Rooms installed a split-level concrete base, allowing the building to step down with the natural contours of the site. This clever approach ensures the front section aligns with the adjacent garage while maintaining a comfortable interior height throughout. To prevent any headroom issues, the roof drops in the rear section where the base lowers, ensuring a practical and ergonomic design.
A High-Quality Interior with Future Potential
Though designed primarily for storage, this garden room has been finished to a high standard, making it a versatile space that could evolve into a home office, gym, or creative studio in the future. Inside, the split-level room features:
- Grooved wall panels for a contemporary, textured finish
- A white ceiling with recessed lighting to create a bright and even illumination
- Laminate flooring for a durable, easy-to-clean surface
- Letterbox-style windows and a half-glazed door to bring in natural light and provide ventilation
- A full electrical setup, including sockets, lights, and a consumer unit
A Smart, Low-Maintenance Exterior
Externally, the garden room extension has been clad in cement fibre board cladding in two shades of grey. This material choice not only enhances the building’s contemporary look but also ensures it remains maintenance-free, retaining its colour and appearance for years to come. To give the structure a seamless, cohesive look, the Cosy Garden Rooms team extended the cladding down over the exposed concrete base, ensuring no raw edges were visible.
The Anthracite Grey uPVC doors and windows complement the cladding, creating a sleek and modern aesthetic. The roof has been carefully detailed with an attractive eaves overhang, and recessed exterior-grade downlights have been installed in the soffits, providing illumination for both the building and the adjacent footpath.
Considering an Attached Garden Room?
While garden rooms attached to the house are possible, they come with additional considerations. Unlike standalone garden rooms, which typically fall under Permitted Development rights, an attached garden room is classified as an extension. This means it is subject to Planning Permission and Building Regulations. Homeowners considering this route should be prepared for a longer build time and a more complex installation process.
Cosy Garden Rooms is upfront about these factors, acknowledging that while an attached garden room can be a practical solution, a separate garden room often offers greater flexibility. A detached garden office or studio provides a peaceful retreat away from the main house, is less likely to require planning approval, and integrates naturally into the garden environment without disrupting the flow of the home.
However, for those who need an integrated space attached to their house, Cosy Garden Rooms has the expertise to create a bespoke design tailored to both the property and the homeowner’s needs. They have also written a comprehensive guide to attached garden rooms, offering insights into the design process, planning considerations, and potential benefits of this approach.
Learn More
If you’re considering an attached garden room, Cosy Garden Rooms has written a dedicated guide to help you understand the process. You can read their guide and explore more project examples at www.cosygardenrooms.co.uk.
For personalised advice, speak to the Cosy Garden Rooms team on 0115 77 22 715 or email info@cosygardenrooms.co.uk.
You can also book a free, no-obligation design consultation to discuss your project and find the best solution for your home.
