20/00156/FUL

14 Church Hill Road Oxford OX4 3S

17 February 2020

Erection of a part single part two storey rear extension. Conversion of garage to habitable space. Alterations to windows to north elevation. Insertion of 3no. roof lights to garage. 

This application raises an issue in relation to the proposal to make the garage at the far end of the garden “habitable”. The proposal involves the installation in the former garage of  a kitchen, bedroom and living room. This would amount to the potential for a functionally separate dwelling. The implications of this possibility, including consideration of the possibility of liability for separate council tax for the newly habitable dwelling space require full consideration by officers and the applicant. There do not appear to have been any such discussions so far. One option may be to impose a condition that the newly habitable former garage may be used only in an ancillary capacity to the existing dwelling. (JGo)