In the UK do you need planning permission to re-build a garage?

Question

We have an old 1920's single car garage which would like to demolish and rebuild.Ideally we would like to build a two car garage
with storage on top. Can we do this without planning permission
in a rural area?

Answer 1

It depends on the local planning regulations. It is worth a phone call to the Planning Department at your local Council to find out. There are usually regulations covering the size and height of the new building and its use. If you go ahead and rebuild without permission it is likely that somebody in the neighbourhood will call the Planning Department and, without the right permission, you could find that you have to pull the whole thing down! It is not just planning either, even if you don't need planning permission, it is likely that you will have to meet building regulations.

Answer 2

Not sure if I am too late or not, but you can try Free Garage Conversions www.freegarageconversions.co.uk They do free garage conversions. They cover London and surrounding areas.

The only cost to you is the planning cost and the architect cost.

If you are planning to convert the garage in to a habitual space and leave the garage door as it is, then this would be under the permitted development. If you want the garage door to be replaced with a door or a window, then you would need to apply for planning permission. On both the options, you would need the architect to draw up the plans and engage the building control as they would need to certify the buildings safety.

Answer 3

My only concerns would be a) the flooring and b) how open it is. You would want to make sure that it could stay heated in the winter enough so that it doesn't get below freezing- believe me, frozen water buckets are a PAIN. Or, you could get floating heaters to put in the buckets, but either way, you would want to have a way to prevent cold winter wind and rain and snow and sleet from blowing in the open doors. You could use a slide door or something. With the flooring, you would want to make sure that if there are going to be any isle ways the horses have to walk on or stall floors with no rubber mats that the cement underneath should be highly textured and not smooth so that horses (or people) won't slip on it.