Do you need planning permission for a Orangery?

An Orangery can be a beautiful addition to a home, imagine extra space for a spacious dining room or a tranquil reading room flooded with light. But, where do you start with planning this new build?

Common questions that we get asked on a regular basis include, 'Do we need planning permission for an Orangery?' and 'Does an Orangery need building regulations?'

Planning permission rules can be complicated and because the consequence of getting it wrong can be costly (rebuilding or even demolishing) you need to make sure you get it right.

There's a lot of information online, so we recommend you only take advice from someone who has significant experience or from trusted sources such as the planning office.

Do you need planning permission for an Orangery? (Updated for 2022)

An Orangery can be thought of as halfway between a conservatory and an extension - an extended space that has the insulation of half brick walls but also the benefit of lots of light and views of your garden.

For planning permission purposes, an Orangery is considered as a single-storey extension and subject to the same guidelines and building regulations as an extension.

You DON'T need planning permission for an orangery IF you build within permitted development rights following the guidelines for what is acceptable.

We have a dedicated team at Everest who manage planning permisison needs and we created this guide so you can get a feel for what you could build without needing planning permission.

Does an Orangery need building regulations?

Conservatories benefit from an exemption of building regulation if they meet the requirements that deem it to be a separate structure to the house. This means the structure must be separated by the external wall of the house and have closing doors or windows between the conservatory space and the rest of the house. It also has to have an independent heating system.

Orangeries are slightly different from a conservatory by using more brick in the construction and are usually an open-plan design leading from the main house.

Unless it has the same exemption as a conservatory, an orangery usually DOES need building regulation approval.

Building regulation is separate to planning permission and you have to gain approval from both authorities. The good news is that if you use a reputable construction company (such as Everest) who are registered with a competent person scheme then you don't need to seek approval yourself.

Other restrictions you need to check before building an Orangery

Original house

Planning guidelines refer to the 'original house' and it's important to understand what this means as it can make a big difference. The 'original house' is the dwelling as it was on the 1st July 1948, or if the house was built after this date, as it was when it was first built. You'll need to find out if any extensions or additions have been made to the house after this date (or when it was built) as they will count towards where your Orangery can be positioned. For example, if you live in a detached house and a five-metre extension was built to the back of the house in 1962, then your new Orangery could only extend less than three metres to rear of the house.

Restrictive covenant

When you purchased your house, the solicitor will have informed you of any covenants for the property. These are restrictions put in place by a previous owner that can stop you from any development or building work on the property or the surrounding land. If you've got a covenant, you might not be able to build an Orangery and are best to seek legal advice. It's worth noting that not all covenants can be legally upheld, depending on how they were drafted and worded, so a good solicitor could help you to get the covenant lifted.

Listed buildings

If you live in a listed building, you'll be aware that you have restrictions to any development or building work you can do to the property. You have to seek listed building consent for an Orangery to be added to a listed property.

Designated land

In addition to listed buildings, if you live in a Conservation Area, National Parks, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty or World Heritage Site, then you're also subject to restriction on what you can do to your property.

This doesn't mean you can't build your Orangery, but you'll have to seek approval from the authority (e.g. national park) and there are rules such as:

• You can't clad any part of the Orangery or your house
• An Orangery to the side of the house doesn't fall into permitted development and would need planning permission

More information

• Read a more detailed explanation on the technicalities of permitted development rights for householders here.
• Read more information about building regulations here.
• The information provided above is taken from government guidelines at from the Planning Portal and Gov.uk and is a guide only and is not a source of legal information.

Information is correct at time of publication: Updated June 2021.

Planning rules are subject to change. Always seek approval from your local planning authority before starting any building work.