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Front Fences, Walls and Gates: The Height Limits That Apply to Boundary Security in England

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Boundary security starts with planning rules

A taller fence or a solid gate is one of the first ideas householders reach for after a burglary scare. In England, the height at which a boundary structure needs planning permission depends mainly on whether it sits next to a road. This article summarises the Planning Portal’s guidance on fences, gates and garden walls, which applies to England only, the text of Class A of Part 2 of Schedule 2 to the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015, and section 164 of the Highways Act 1980, which extends to England and Wales. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own planning rules, which are outside the scope of this article. It is general information, not legal advice.

The two height limits (England)

The Planning Portal says planning permission is not needed to erect, alter, maintain, improve or take down a fence, wall or gate where it is next to a highway used by vehicles, or the footpath of such a highway, and it would not exceed one metre in height from ground level. Elsewhere the limit is two metres from ground level.

Class A of the 2015 Order gives the underlying right. It covers the erection, construction, maintenance, improvement or alteration of a gate, fence, wall or other means of enclosure. The Order sets the same one-metre limit where the structure is adjacent to a highway used by vehicular traffic and two metres in other cases. It also provides a specific rule for schools, which is not relevant to homes.

Replacing or altering an existing boundary (England)

The Order says that where an existing structure is maintained, improved or altered, it must not exceed its original height or the applicable limit for a new structure, whichever is greater. The Planning Portal similarly says the right is not available where an existing fence, wall or gate already exceeds the limits and its height would be increased. Replacing a fence like for like is therefore treated differently from raising it.

When the right does not apply (England)

The Planning Portal lists conditions under which the height allowances cannot be used:

  • the site is a listed building or lies within the curtilage of one;
  • the boundary forms a boundary with a neighbouring listed building or its curtilage; or
  • the right has been removed by an Article 4 direction or a planning condition.

Class A itself excludes development within the curtilage of, or affecting an enclosure surrounding, a listed building. The Planning Portal adds that in a conservation area, permission might be needed to take down a fence, wall or gate, and that additional local rules may affect what is required.

What this means for front boundaries (England)

A boundary running along a public road, and therefore adjacent to a highway used by vehicles, cannot be raised above one metre under this right. A solid two-metre front fence or wall beside a road would need planning permission unless another route applies. A boundary that is not adjacent to a highway used by vehicles falls under the higher two-metre limit, subject to the exceptions above, so a fence between two back gardens is treated differently from a front wall.

Gates follow the same rules as fences and walls. Where a gate is powered or an automatic barrier, planning height limits are only one of the requirements, and the health and safety duties are covered in this site’s article on powered gates and automatic barriers. Physical deterrents such as climbing barriers are discussed in the guide to anti-climb systems.

Hedges (England)

The Planning Portal states that planning permission is not needed for hedges, although restrictions may apply where covenants or planning conditions govern planting. A dense boundary hedge is not covered by the fence height limits, though it remains subject to any conditions attached to the property.

Barbed wire beside a highway (England and Wales)

Section 164 of the Highways Act 1980 addresses barbed wire on land next to a highway. It applies where the wire is a nuisance to the highway because it is likely to be injurious to people or animals lawfully using the highway. The highway authority, or the local authority for the area, can serve written notice on the occupier of the land requiring the nuisance to be dealt with within a period of not less than one month and not more than six months. If the notice is ignored, the authority can seek a magistrates’ court order, and if that is ignored it may remove the wire and recover the cost from the occupier. The text is framed around barbed wire and does not mention other deterrent products.

Common questions

Does a fence panel replacement need planning permission in England? Not where the right in Class A applies and the height stays within the original height or the applicable limit, whichever is greater.

Does a front wall of 1.5 metres by a residential road need permission? On the Planning Portal’s wording, a structure adjacent to a vehicular highway above one metre falls outside the permitted development right.

How can an owner tell whether an Article 4 direction applies? The right can be removed by an Article 4 direction or a condition attached to the property, and the Planning Portal advises checking for additional local rules before applying or starting work.

The bottom line

In England, a fence, wall or gate next to a road can generally be built or altered without planning permission up to one metre, and up to two metres elsewhere, unless the property is listed, forms a boundary with a listed neighbour, or the right has been withdrawn by an Article 4 direction or condition. Anyone planning taller front boundary security should confirm the position with the local planning authority first, and in England and Wales the barbed wire power in the Highways Act 1980 sits alongside the planning rules.

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