Having secured a meeting with the Bishop it seemed important to get support from Enfield Council to give more weight to any proposal using the combined church and council land. While looking for supportive policy we stumbled across a document “Custom & Self Build in Enfield” which put forward a strategy for delivering custom and self … More Trying to get Enfield Council support
We did however need a partner. I had recently become friends with a mother whose daughter was in my son’s class who was in a similar position to ourselves. I had bumped into her on several occasions outside the school gates and we had discussed our housing dilemmas. She longed for a home of their … More Partnering up
Could we possibly buy the land? We knew could not do it on our own. The rough auctioneers’ valuation was considerably beyond our means but the plot was big enough for two houses, so would we be able to get planning permission for two houses and find someone to partner with? And even if we could what … More A window of opportunity
But before we had much time to develop these ideas I heard from the vicar that the Diocese intended to proceed with the sale by November. We decided to call to say we were still interested. We had little idea how to negotiate, some ideas about persuading them not to sell the land but keep … More An Opportunity but a race against time
It had been difficult getting to meet the Enfield Development Manager in the first place, and getting a post-meeting response was not much easier. I eventually secured one by copying in our local MP, and when it came it was a full and considered response. It included the contact for the Right to Build in the … More From Planning to Property
Our prospects were bleak, but while standing in the tiny house looking at the dismal surroundings I had a change of heart and a spurt of determination. Peter had encouraged me to look at building our own house, and I’d talked to a few friends and looked at a few auction sites but had never really taken … More The Right to Build
Diary of a Wannabe Self Builder 