Do you need planning permission for a patio in Middlesbrough?

The starting point: ground-level patios are permitted

The Planning Portal, the government's planning website, is clear that away from the front garden "there are no restrictions on the area of land which you can cover with hard surfaces at, or near, ground level." In other words, the size of a back-garden patio is not limited by planning law. A patio that replaces a lawn behind a semi in Acklam, or runs the full width of a detached house in Nunthorpe, is normally permitted development.

Two qualifications sit inside that same guidance. First, "significant works of embanking or terracing to support a hard surface" might need an application. Second, the rights belong to houses only, so they do not apply to flats and maisonettes, to homes converted under change-of-use rights, or where a planning condition or Article 4 Direction has taken them away. If you bought a newer house in Coulby Newham or Hemlington, check the original planning permission for conditions that remove permitted development rights; some estates have them.

Raised patios and the 30cm rule

This is where most Middlesbrough patios that need permission come unstuck. Under Class E of the General Permitted Development Order, a raised platform is only permitted if it is no more than 30cm above the ground. The Planning Portal applies the same limit to decking and to any other raised platform, and a raised patio counts.

The rule bites in sloping gardens, which are common on the higher ground towards Nunthorpe, Ormesby and Great Ayton. If the garden falls away from the house and you want a level terrace outside the back doors, the far edge can easily end up more than 30cm above the lawn. In that case you can:

• step the patio down in two or more levels, each within the limit,
• cut into the slope instead of building up, which also keeps the patio below the damp-proof course, or
• apply for planning permission for the raised design.

The other Class E limits still apply to platforms: together with extensions and outbuildings they must not cover more than half the garden, and none can sit forward of the front wall of the house. We measure finished levels against the existing ground before designing a raised section, so the answer is known before any spade goes in.

Front gardens: the five square metre rule

Paving at the front is treated differently. The Planning Portal says you will not need planning permission if the new surface is permeable, such as gravel, permeable block paving or porous asphalt, or if rainwater runs off onto a lawn or border within the garden. If you cover more than five square metres with a traditional impermeable surface that drains onto the road, you need permission. The government's guidance on permeable surfacing of front gardens sets out ways to comply. A seating area in a front garden is rare, but if yours is planned, design the drainage first.

Listed buildings and conservation areas

If your home is listed, you need listed building consent for significant works, inside or out. That can include paving within the garden where it affects the setting of the building.

Middlesbrough Council has eight conservation areas, including Linthorpe, Acklam Hall, Albert Park and Linthorpe Road Historic Quarter, Marton and The Grove, Nunthorpe and Poole, Ormesby Hall, and Stainton and Thornton. Being in one does not, on its own, stop you laying a back-garden patio. What changes is:

• Linthorpe has an Article 4 Direction. The council's 2010 Direction removes some permitted development rights on named streets. It is aimed at changes to the fronts of houses, so a back-garden patio is normally unaffected, but front-garden paving, front walls and gates on those streets may need permission.
• Trees are protected. The council needs six weeks' notice before you prune, lop or fell a tree in any conservation area. Digging a patio base close to a mature tree can damage roots, so that notice should be given early if a tree is involved.
• Materials matter more. In front of a Victorian villa on The Avenue or near The Grove in Marton, reclaimed or natural stone usually sits better than bright porcelain, even where no permission is needed.

Which council covers your address?

This catches people out around the edge of the town. Linthorpe, Acklam, Marton, Nunthorpe, Coulby Newham and Hemlington are in Middlesbrough Council's area. Normanby has a TS6 postcode but is in Redcar and Cleveland Council's area, Ormesby is split between Middlesbrough and Redcar and Cleveland, and Great Ayton and Stokesley are dealt with by North Yorkshire Council, which took over from Hambleton District Council in 2023. Your council tax bill shows which council covers you. The national rules are the same, but conservation areas, Article 4 Directions and pre-application advice are run by whichever council is responsible for the land, so contact the right one.

Things that need checking whatever the planning position

• Building regulations. A patio rarely needs building regulations approval, but it must not bridge the damp-proof course or block air bricks.
• Drains and manholes. Inspection chambers inside the patio must stay accessible, so we fit recessed covers rather than paving over them.
• Boundary walls. A new wall around a raised patio has its own permitted development limits; walls next to a road have lower limits than garden walls elsewhere.
• Neighbours. A raised area that looks straight into next door is the most likely cause of a complaint, even when it is lawful.

Questions people ask

Sources: Planning Portal: patios and driveways; Planning Portal: decking and raised platforms; Planning Portal: paving your front garden; GOV.UK: permitted development rights for householders, technical guidance; Middlesbrough Council: conservation areas; Middlesbrough Council: Linthorpe Article 4(2) Direction.

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• Cleaning black spot, moss and algae
• Re-pointing patio joints
• What affects the price of a patio