Rooms
Corner garden rooms: using the awkward end of the garden
In short
A corner garden room tucks into the meeting point of two fences, leaving the middle of the garden free. Because it sits within 2 m of two boundaries, it must be no more than 2.5 m high under permitted development. Most are square or rectangular rooms set into the corner, with doors on the open side; angled and L-shaped designs cost more.
The far corner of a garden is often the least used part of it: in shade for half the day, too far from the house for a table and chairs, and awkward to plant. It is also the spot that keeps the rest of the garden open, which is why so many garden rooms end up there. Here is how to make a corner room work.
Shapes that suit a corner
There are three common approaches.
A rectangle set into the corner. The simplest and cheapest. A 4 × 3 m or 3 × 3 m room sits square against both fences, with doors and glazing on the two open sides. Most corner rooms are like this.
A room with an angled front. The two back walls run along the fences and the front is cut across at an angle, so the doors face diagonally down the garden. It looks distinctive and catches more of the view, but angled walls, roof and glazing add cost.
An L-shaped room. Two wings meet in the corner, one along each fence. It gives two zones, for example an office and a store, or a bar and a seating area, but the roof junction and extra walls make it one of the more expensive layouts.
The height rule in a corner
A corner room is within 2 m of at least two boundaries, so under permitted development the whole building must be no more than 2.5 m high, measured from the highest ground next to it. There is no way around that while staying in the corner, so design for about 2.1 to 2.2 m of headroom inside.
The room must also stay behind the house and, with other outbuildings, cover no more than half of the garden. Our planning guide has the full list.
Building right up to the fence
A room tight against a fence leaves no space to clad, treat or repair the back walls. Two common answers:
- Leave a gap. 300 to 500 mm is enough to get a brush and a ladder in. It also helps air circulate behind the cladding.
- Use low-maintenance materials on the hidden sides. Composite boards, fibre cement or metal cladding need little attention once fitted.
Gutters and roof edges must not overhang the neighbour’s land. If the room’s foundations will be close to a neighbour’s building or wall, the Party Wall Act may apply; the government’s explanatory booklet sets out when notice is needed.
Light and doors
Corners are often shady, especially in a north-facing garden. To get the most light in:
- Put the largest glazing on the most open side, facing the house or the sun.
- Add a long, high window on one back wall, above fence height, for light without being overlooked.
- Consider a roof light in a flat roof, which brings in far more light than a wall window of the same size.
Choose sliding doors or bifolds where space in front of the room is limited, and make sure the doors open onto a level path or patio rather than the lawn.
What a corner garden room costs
A rectangular room set into a corner is priced like any other garden room: in Yorkshire, about £1,600 to £2,000 per square metre built, insulated and wired, so £19,000 to £24,000 for a 4 × 3 m room. Expect to add:
- An angled front: often 10 to 20% more than a rectangle of the same floor area.
- An L-shape: commonly 20 to 30% more, because of the extra walls and the roof junction.
- Composite or metal cladding on hidden walls: a few hundred to a couple of thousand pounds, depending on size.
- A roof light: typically £800 to £2,000 fitted.
These are guides, not quotes. If you are looking at garden rooms in Leeds for a corner plot, the price calculator shows the rectangular price, and the percentages above give a sense of what a more complex shape adds.