Please note: For guidance on work to your front garden (the area of land between the front walls of the house and the highway) see: paving your front garden.

Elsewhere around your house there are no restrictions on the area of land which you can cover with hard surfaces at, or near, ground level. However, significant works of embanking or terracing to support a hard surface might need a planning application. If you live in a listed building, you will need listed building consent for any significant works whether internal or external.

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Generally, a new driveway or patio area does not require building regulations approval.

However, you will need to make sure that any alterations do not make access to the dwelling any less satisfactory than it was before.

Avoid using concrete or tarmac on your patio - this can help to keep gardens cool in summer.  

Slow down water drainage into the ground by using porous materials or open structures such as gravel on driveways and in the garden.