Planning Permission For Timber Garden Buildings

Last updated: October 2025

One of the most frequent questions we are asked is 'Do I need planning permission for my Garden Building?'

All timber garden structures, including Garden Sheds, Summerhouses and Garages are subject to planning permission rules; however, the good news is that the majority of our buildings won't actually require planning permission for installation.

Whether you need planning permission for your Garden Shed, Summerhouse, Garden Room or Garden Office will all depend on where you wish to place the building in your garden and if you should live in an area that has been designated as a national park or similar. Providing certain criteria are met and the building is considered permitted development, you can proceed without needing permission.

Our quick and easy to use planning permission calculator will help you work out if you need planning permission for your garden building. If you do, our efficient and reliable team are available to take care of the paperwork when you buy a garden building from us.

The Guidelines

Whether you need planning permission for your garden studio, garden office or garden room will all depend on eight key factors:

The height of the building
The size of the building and total area it covers
The location of the building
The building’s intended use
The presence of raised platforms such as verandas or balconies
Your property type
If you have a listed building
If you live on designated land

Providing certain criteria are met and the building is considered permitted development, you can proceed without needing planning permission.

1. Building height

How tall can my garden office be without planning permission?

Illustration showing building height restrictions for buildings less than 2m from boundary

You will need planning permission if:

Your building is more than one storey tall
Your building is more than 2.5 metres from existing ground level (if within 2 metres of a property boundary)
OR
Your building is more than 4 metres for a dual pitched roof or 3 metres for any other type of roof (if built more than 2 metres from a property boundary)
The eaves are more than 2.5 metres (if you have a dual pitched roof).

Did you know? All Crane garden buildings with pent roofs are less than 2.5m in height. We can also lower the overall roof height of the majority of our apex roof buildings to help keep things simple for you.

2. Building size & area

How big can my garden room be without planning permission?

Illustration showing total curtilage covered by garden buildings as less than 50%

You will need planning permission if:

Your building is more than 30 metres square
Buildings which are not part of the original house (including extensions, sheds and conservatories) collectively cover more than 50% of the total curtilage.

3. Building location

Where am I allowed to put a garden building?

Illustration showing position of house to roads

You will need planning permission if:

The building is to be built in front of the principal elevation of the house
The building will be closer to a road or public highway than the original house itself.

Don’t forget to take into consideration the location of your garden shed, garage, summerhouse or other outbuilding in respect of your property boundary (see point 1. Building Height).

4. Intended use

What can I use my garden office for?

Illustration showing garden building with bed inside and antenna on the roof. Antenna and bed are circled in yellow

You will need planning permission if:

The building will be used as a self-contained living accommodation
The building will be fitted with a microwave antenna

Crane Garden Buildings do not sell buildings for use as self-contained living accommodation; this is because buildings for this purpose need to comply with the strict rules of building regulations, which our buildings do not.

5. Raised platforms (verandas and balconies)

Do I need planning permission for a veranda?

Illustration of a veranda

You will need planning permission if:

Your veranda or balcony is more than 0.3 metres high.

Our raised platforms all come in at under 0.3 metres as standard - meaning you can have all the luxury of an outdoor transition space, without any additional hassle!

6. Your property type

Can I have a shed for my flat?

Illustration showing these guidelines are specific to houses

The above guidance covered so far all applies to houses, which have different permitted development rights to flats, maisonettes and apartments. In most cases, planning permission would be required for garden rooms being built near these properties.

7. Listed buildings

Can I build a garden shed near my listed building?

Illustration of a thatched cottage

You will need planning permission and listed building consent if:

Your building features on the List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest.

Don’t let these considerations put you off! We build a considerable number of garden buildings for customers with listed properties and can help support you with your planning permission application (service does not cover listed building consent application).

8. Designated land

What are the restrictions for building on designated land?

Illustration of a UNESCO sign

Designated land is the term used to describe areas of interest such as: national parks, the Broads, World Heritage Sites, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and conservation areas.

You will need planning permission if:

The total area of ground covered by the garden building would exceed 10 metres, and is situated more than 20 metres from any wall of the dwelling.
The building would sit between a side wall and the boundary of the land surrounding the house.

For further information, visit the Government Planning Portal website.

We hope this planning advice has been helpful to you.

If you would like to learn more about our wide range of timber garden buildings, please click on one of the links below: