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Who would complain if the wire suffered accidental damage this winter?

Perhaps to do with corrosion of the rebar in the beams? Everywhere says it must be ventilated (telescopic vent every 3m typically) but I've not yet found a reason why given.

Depending on the lie of the land it might be better to have a manhole half way along the 20m run. If the fall is 2.5m over 20m then 1:40 uses up 0.5m leaving 2m. Perhaps use two 1m high drops, one near the house and one at the mid point or part way along. Lots of options if that doesn't work for some reason. Increasing the number of manholes can reduce the depth of the trench for the pipe as well as for the manhole.

Just a heads up.. Is there a public foot path across the plot? Looks like there might be one running diagonally from NW to SE according to.. https://getoutside.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/local/dunsfold-waverley This might not be an issue as footpaths can be diverted but it's another possible hurdle. May require you to provide a new route around the edge. The footpath officer should be able to provide a definitive map for you as the OS maps are sometimes wrong. There was one across our plot but the previous owner had done the paperwork to move it. We still had to level the new route and put down grass. We put down seed but then the footpath officer wouldn't agree to open the new route until it had become established. This meant we couldn't close the old one and start work on the foundations until the grass grew. So overnight we turfed it and had him back for another inspection! Some 10 years later and we have never seen anybody walk the footpath because there is another parallel to it through the church next door.

Definitely worth a shot especially with your contacts. My guess is the planners will take your pre-app fee and ask you to provide some drawings of the proposal. At least a site plan and possibly more. That way they have something to consider. So there will be other costs in addition to the planning fee. Unless you buy a plot with PP already these costs are pretty much unavoidable. We had decided to use an architect to design our house so I visited a few just to see what they were like, tell them about the plot and ask for a fee proposal. One of them actually went to my site and with the quote he sent 3 or 4 ink and water colour sketches of his ideas for the plot!! He got the job. Don't be disappointed if the planners say no for a bunch of reasons. I've noticed that when it's a marginal decision they sometimes tend to look for other factors that support their view to try and make it more clear cut. There are many people who have worked to address the issues, pressed on anyway and submitted a full application, had it rejected, and gone on to win at appeal. At each stage you will have to decide if it's worth the financial risk. You may even, as we did, end up paying out for a planning consultant to review your proposal and tell you if it's worth going to the next stage. As you go through the process make sure you keep an eye on any time limits. I had a look at google sat view and it looks like a very nice location. I would plan to retain any trees that exist and possibly offer to plant more on the boundaries to screen your house? Do your friends also own the land slightly to the south of the plot? How about access to services? Sewer in the road and electric etc? Problems with those can add a small fortune to the build cost.

It is but see "Drop Shaft or Back Drop Connection" on this page... http://www.pavingexpert.com/drain05.htm#dropshaft Allows you to keep below the max recommended falls on the pipes. Edit: Note the use of a large radius bend at the bottom of the drop in the photo. I think this is safer than the tight bend shown in the diagram.

Going back to the OP... If short of time I would just get the boat house to do a basic connection and pipe run to your boundary or manhole just inside you boundary, worry about the onsite detail later.

If you have been lurking you will probably have seen warnings and risks about plots without planning permission. They can be worth considering but don't pay plot price or even half plot price for a what is currently just a field. Likewise don't end up paying to get planning permission only for the owner to jack up the price or sell to a third party. Consider some sort of option to purchase contract while you get planning permission etc If it's already on the market then It makes no sense for someone to sell land without trying to get planning permission themselves first so got to ask why haven't they tried already? Sorry if you know all this stuff. If not try "How to find and buy a building plot" by Roy Speer.

Could depend on the layout of the settlement boundary. Would it set a precedent for adjoining land (eg stick out into virgin countryside) or is it more of an infill situation (fill in a "notch" in the settlement boundary?).

Personally I don't recommend accepting a quote "Inc VAT" and then not paying the VAT. It might be legal but it's better to point out beforehand that it should be zero rated. If they are awkward about it go elsewhere. If they get awkward after doing the work they may not be so keen to sort any problems or warranty.

Before a final decision check frost ratings. Also check possibility of salt/efflorescence (white staining) as some types of brick are more prone than others.

I don't think you I'll be able to stop them doing this unless they aren't allowed to drive vehicles on that path/road. Is it officially a public footpath or highway? I ask because in most parts of the UK you aren't allowed to drive vehicles on or across a public footpath that's not also a highway. I would try and find out who owns it first. You may have to do a map Search at the Land Registry web site. Make sure you use the real web site as some fakes look better than the real one. If it's public land then I think you would need to ask the highway agency what its status is. Sometimes, but not always, you need permission from the council to create a new vehicular access onto your property. You could ask the council about the possibility of creating an access to your own as the same rules will probably apply to the neighbours. The council are likely to grant permission unless there are good reasons for refusal. Unfortunately the concerns you raised are unlikely to count. Proximity to a busy road junction or dangerous bend is the sort of thing they worry about. If it appears nobody owns the land you could in theory fence it off and after 12 years claim ownership. In the meantime only the legal owner (that might not exist) can evict you. However if other neighbors have established a legal right to use the path then this approach won't work. Clearly some of the above would seriously annoy people that have been using the path/road for access for years so think carefully before you open a can of worms.

What sort of filters are they? Our system is quite crude and the filters are very coarse. Only designed to stop bugs getting in but they can be washed out with a hose.

Traps should only dry out if not used for say two weeks. Check you don't have a design problem with the water being syphoned out. The cure might be to add a AAV.

My mvhr can draw a lot more than expected if I don't keep the filters clean. It once blew a 1A fuse so may have been drawing 250w!!!

You can set up a SIPP for anyone. If under 16/18 the SIPP is usually in your name (or parents name) with the childs initials added. They sometimes refer to this as a "designated" account. They get control when they are 18 I think but cant withdraw it until 55. ISA or a combination of both might be better if they are likely to need access sooner. Generally it's best for you to give the money direct to the child rather than via their parents. That's because if parents give their children money, any income they earn over £100 a year it treated as the parents income. Keep record of payments for IHT purposes (exempt after 7 years).

For longer term investments: Consider topping up your pension and claiming the extra tax relief. Let them worry about investing it for you. Check your/wifes NI record. Currently you can buy missed years for £750 ish and get an extra £250 ish a year pension. That's a pretty good return. Important to get advice because you may not get extra pension if you have already paid enough years. Currently you can back date to 2006 but this is temporary. Normally you can only backdate 6 years. Consider setting up SIPP(s) grand children no matter how young they are. You can put in £2880 a year and 6 months later the government will add another £720 making it up to £3,600 gross even if they aren't tax payers. Free money right there. Double check the amounts as they may have changed? If you want them to have access to the money earlier then look as an JISA or Adult ISA but watch the fees. Perhaps hold off investing in the stock market until Brexit is out of the way. It's not at all obvious how Brexit it will effect the stock market. If you do invest I would look at both UK and overseas. eg UK based funds that invest in a diverse range of UK and overseas companies.

All the forms are here https://www.planningportal.co.uk/info/200126/applications/70/community_infrastructure_levy/5

Claire, So Outline Permission has been granted and the council have sent a levy liability notice to the current owner? Has the current owner already submitted an Assumption of Liability (Form 1) already? If so then I believe he has to send in a Transfer of assumption of liability (form 4). Otherwise you send in an Assumption of Liability (Form 1) You have to sort the Liability issue before you can submit the Self Build Exemption (Form 7, Part 1). It says that on the form 7. So as I understand it your process will be .. 1) Either Current Owner submits a Transfer of assumption of liability (form 4), OR you send in an Assumption of Liability (Form 1). 2) Apply for and obtain Full Planning Permission/Reserved matters. 3) Apply for Self Build Exemption (Form 7, Part 1) 4) Wait for exemption to be granted! 5) Submit Commencement Notice (Form 6) 6) Wait for acknowledgement of receipt of Commencement Notice! 7) Start work 8) After completion BUT within 6 months submit Self Build Exemption (Form 7, Part 2) Warnings: The essential thing is that you do not start any work on site until you have done all the paperwork for the self-builder exemption. Otherwise you will be liable to pay the CIL. I'm not sure what happens if a previous owner has obtained Outline Planning Permission and then they have started some work on site. Does that preclude the new owner, a self builder, claiming the exemption? If it does then I believe a whole new planning application might be required.

If you want to hand deliverh.. There will be a list of committee members on the council web site somewhere and elsewhere another database/list with their addresses and contact details.

You can either copy the other members yourself or send it to the secretary who should do it for you if you ask. Tell her it's for the next meeting. I would make it a letter rather than an email even if that's how you send it to them.

I would write to the planning officer copy the chairman of the planning committee pointing out the errors (Don't call them lies) in the planning officers report. Wherever possible compare your house to those around it already approved. Our application was helped by having a street scene drawing that showed our house and the buildings either side as viewed from the road. Two versions, one with trees and one without.

We used a prime contractor and he employed two general builders. One mostly did foundations, bricklaying, roof tiling etc. The other did mostly woodwork, plumbing and insulation. There was a lot of overlap between these two and they put up our guttering together.

Regarding the tender documents... Each bidder will send you a quote that includes a lot of assumptions. There will also be provisional amounts included for things like the windows, kitchen, second fix items, landscaping etc. This means you cannot just compare the bottom line on each bid as the assumptions and provisional sums may be different. The cheapest bidder might be the most expensive if he has allowed a lot less for something compared to others. What someone has to do is go through the bids and adjust the bottom line to ensure they are all made on the same basis before you make the comparison. If its a very large project you might wish to pay your own QS to estimate the build cost. Decades ago there were reports of builders colluding over their bids and using a QS would give you a sanity check (at a price).

Would moving house be easier?