Garden Rooms in Edinburgh
A garden room gives you a home office, studio, gym or snug without moving house or building onto the house itself. South Edinburgh Joinery designs timber garden rooms for Edinburgh homes, with the joinery done by our own team. We check what your plot allows first, so the room you plan is one you can actually build.
Joinery made to fit
A garden room is planned around your garden, the access and what you want to use it for. Doors, windows, built-in desks, shelving and storage can be made to fit by our joiners.
What a garden room can be used for
- Home office: a quiet, separate place to work, with power and data.
- Studio or workshop: for art, music or making.
- Gym: with a floor built to take the weight.
- Snug or playroom: extra living space for the family.
- Guest room: note that rooms with sleeping accommodation have stricter rules (see below).
Do I need planning permission?
Often not, but it depends on your house and plot. In Scotland, permitted development rights (Class 3A) allow outbuildings within the curtilage of a house if, among other limits (Scottish Government Planning Circular 1/2024):
- it is not forward of the principal or side elevation where that elevation fronts a road
- the eaves are no higher than 3 metres and the building no higher than 4 metres
- any part within 1 metre of the boundary is no higher than 2.5 metres
- no more than half of the front or rear garden is covered by development
- it is not used as a separate dwelling
Conservation areas and listed buildings are different. Much of south Edinburgh, including Morningside, Bruntsfield, Marchmont, the Grange and Merchiston, is in a conservation area. There, Class 3A only covers an outbuilding with a footprint of up to 8 m². Within the curtilage of a listed building the limit is 4 m². Anything larger needs planning permission. Listed building consent is also required if the work would affect the character of a listed building. Flats do not have these permitted development rights at all.
We check your plot against these rules before you commit.
Do I need a building warrant?
The Building (Scotland) Regulations 2004 exempt some small detached buildings from needing a warrant. A detached single-storey building of more than 8 m² and up to 30 m², ancillary to a house and within its curtilage, does not need a warrant unless it is within 1 metre of the house and is not at least 1 metre from every boundary, or it contains a fixed combustion appliance (such as a wood-burning stove) or a sanitary facility (such as a toilet or sink), or it is a swimming pool deeper than 1.2 metres (Schedule 3, type 4). Buildings that do not need a warrant must still meet the standards that apply to them. Bigger rooms, rooms with a toilet or a stove, or rooms used for sleeping are likely to need a warrant. We confirm with City of Edinburgh building standards where it is not clear-cut.
What goes into one of our garden rooms
- Site visit. We look at the ground, access, boundaries, trees and where power will come from.
- Design and quote. Size, layout, windows and doors, insulation, finishes and fitted joinery, priced in writing.
- Base. A base suited to the ground and the room.
- Structure and roof. Insulated walls, floor and roof so the room is usable all year.
- Windows and doors. Sized for light and ventilation, and secure.
- Electrics. Power and lighting are agreed in the design and included in the written quote.
- Fitted joinery. Desks, shelving and storage made to fit.
Prices
The price depends on the size, the specification, the access and the rest of the scope. After a home visit we give a fixed written quote for the agreed work.
Where we work
Across Edinburgh, including Morningside, Bruntsfield, the Grange, Merchiston, Marchmont, Blackford, Greenbank, Colinton and Corstorphine, and into Midlothian including Penicuik and Dalkeith.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need planning permission for a garden room in Edinburgh?
Often not, if it meets the Scottish permitted development limits for outbuildings: behind the house, no more than 4 metres high (2.5 metres within 1 metre of a boundary), eaves no higher than 3 metres, and covering no more than half the garden. In a conservation area, only outbuildings up to 8 m² are covered (4 m² for listed buildings).
Do I need a building warrant for a garden room?
A detached single-storey building of more than 8 m² and up to 30 m², ancillary to a house and within its curtilage, is usually exempt, unless it is within 1 metre of the house and not at least 1 metre from every boundary, or it has a stove, toilet, sink, or a swimming pool deeper than 1.2 metres. Larger rooms, or rooms with sleeping accommodation, are likely to need a warrant.
Can I use a garden room as a bedroom?
A room used for sleeping is treated differently under building standards and is likely to need a warrant. Permitted development does not cover a separate dwelling. Talk to us first.
Can I have a toilet in my garden room?
Yes, but a sanitary facility removes the building warrant exemption, so a warrant is likely to be needed.
Will a garden room be warm enough in winter?
Ours are insulated in the walls, floor and roof, with heating options to suit how you use the room.
Can you build in a garden with no side access?
It depends on the garden. We check access at the site visit and include what that means in the written quote.
Start with a site visit
Tell us what you want to use the room for and where it will go. We will visit, check the rules for your plot and give you a written quote.