Do I need planning permission for a fence, driveway or garden wall?
Most domestic fences, walls and driveways fall under permitted development, but there are height and drainage limits that catch people out. Rules also differ across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, so treat this as a starting point and confirm with your council.
Fences and garden walls
You can normally build up to 2m high at rear and side boundaries without planning permission. Next to a highway — including a footpath alongside a road — the limit drops to 1m.
Those limits include any trellis on top and are measured from the higher ground level. Listed buildings, conservation areas and properties with planning conditions attached often have stricter rules. You also cannot alter a boundary structure that belongs to a neighbour.
Driveways
Laying a new front driveway is permitted development if the surface is permeable — gravel, permeable block paving or porous asphalt — or if run-off is directed to a lawn or border. Laying more than 5m² of impermeable surface that drains onto the road needs planning permission.
Dropping the kerb to get onto the drive always needs the highway authority's approval, whatever the surface.
Building Regulations
Planning permission and Building Regulations are separate. A freestanding garden wall generally does not need Building Regs approval, but it does need to be structurally safe — a wall over about 1m usually needs a proper concrete footing and, above roughly 1.2m, piers or a thicker construction. If in doubt, ask a structural engineer.