Talk to Your Neighbours When Building a Garden Room
Updated: 14 September 2024
Reading Time: 2 minutes 5 seconds
Our many years in the garden room industry have shown us that it’s wise to talk to your neighbours when building a garden room. Neighbours can become concerned, and an early conversation can help prevent issues further down the line.
If you need to apply for planning permission to build a garden room, your neighbours will be contacted for their opinion during the process. It’s a good idea to share details of the design and intended use of your garden room with your neighbours before the planning office reaches out to them.
Even if you're building your garden room under Permitted Development rules and don’t need to apply for planning permission, it’s still sensible to have a conversation with your neighbours.
This article is part of a series that explores the rules you need to consider when building a garden room.
Tell Your Neighbours What You’ll Use the Room For
Garden rooms are used for a wide range of activities, from home offices to entertainment spaces and everything in between. In our experience, it's helpful to let your neighbours know how you plan to use your new space.
For example, we’ve spoken with neighbours concerned about a garden music room being built next door, worried about how noise might affect their own garden use. If the music studio owner had explained that soundproofing measures were in place to reduce noise, the neighbour’s concerns could have been eased.
Neighbours are usually less concerned if you're building a quiet space like a home office. However, if you're creating something like a hair salon in your garden, they may worry about noise or parking.
Explain That Your Garden Room Complies with the Rules
A Lawful Development Certificate can help reassure your neighbours that your garden room complies with the relevant rules. We’ve written before about how obtaining a Lawful Development Certificate from your Local Authority can confirm that your build is legal. This certificate can also be useful when selling your house, as solicitors may request it during the conveyancing process.
Neighbours can sometimes feel uneasy if they believe a garden room doesn’t have planning approval. A Lawful Development Certificate can give them peace of mind that you are following the proper guidelines.
Explain How Long the Installation Phase Will Last
Another common concern from neighbours is the duration of construction. We can relate, as our own neighbours have been building an extension for five years, and even they’ve lost track of when it might be finished!
Fortunately, garden room builders are typically much better at estimating on-site build times. Since much of the construction is done off-site, the on-site phase is often quicker than other types of home improvement.
Some small garden rooms can be fully installed in just one day, while larger, more complex designs may take two to three weeks. In most cases, the installation teams work Monday to Friday during normal business hours.
Garden room companies are experienced in project management and can provide a schedule for material deliveries and the number of vehicles involved, allowing you to organise parking in advance. Sharing this information with your neighbours, along with the expected working hours, can help alleviate their concerns.
