Do you need planning permission for a garden golf net in England?
Sometimes, and the height and position of the posts decide it. The permitted development rules cap garden structures at 2.5 m within 2 m of a boundary (3 m elsewhere, 4 m with a dual-pitched roof), fences at 2 m, and the one published appeal decision about a net cage on garden posts ruled it a building that needed permission. This guide quotes the actual rules and that decision, then measures the nets actually sold in the UK against each threshold. It reports published sources; it is not legal advice, it covers England only, and the safe move is always a written answer from your council before posts go in.
How high can a garden structure be without planning permission?
The framework is theGeneral Permitted Development Order 2015, Schedule 2, Part 1, Class E, which permits buildings and enclosures "incidental to the enjoyment of the dwellinghouse", within limits quoted here as written: no more than "2.5 metres in the case of a building, enclosure or container within 2 metres of the boundary of the curtilage", 3 m in any other case, "4 metres in the case of a building with a dual-pitched roof", single storey only, maximum 2.5 m eaves, nothing forward of the principal elevation, no more than 50% of the garden covered, and nothing in the curtilage of a listed building. On designated land (National Parks, AONBs and similar) further limits apply. Thegovernment's technical guidance confirms the 2.5 m near-boundary reading applies to the total development.
Is a golf net a fence or a building?
It matters because the ceilings differ.Part 2, Class A permits "a gate, fence, wall or other means of enclosure" up to 2 m, or 1 m next to a road used by vehicular traffic. Class E allows more height but treats the object as a building. No published decision we could find rules on which regime a garden golf net belongs to, and the government's own definition cuts both ways: for Class E purposes a building "includes any structure or erection... but does not include... gates, fences, walls, or other means of enclosure". In the closest published case, below, the inspector went the building route.
The Warrington net cage decision: what actually got ruled
Appeal decision APP/M0655/C/18/3206121 (Planning Inspectorate, April 2019) concerned a garden cricket practice cage in Warrington: six 3.6 m posts concreted into the ground with a removable 50 mm mesh net, functionally identical to a garden golf cage. The inspector applied the statutory definition, in which a building "includes any structure or erection, and any part of a building" (s.336, Town and Country Planning Act 1990), weighed size, degree of permanence and physical attachment, and held that the removability of the net did not save the structure: "'permanent' in the context of planning control does not necessarily mean everlasting". Because the cage stood immediately alongside the boundary and exceeded 2.5 m, it was outside Class E and planning permission was required; the enforcement notice stood, with the options of removal or reduction to 2.5 m.
What is established by that decision: a net structure on concreted posts, taller than 2.5 m and within 2 m of a boundary, is not permitted development in England, even if the net itself comes down. What remains genuinely unsettled: whether a truly portable net, with no ground fixing, put away after use, involves "development" at all. The fact-and-degree reasoning suggests it may not, but no published decision says so for a golf net, and appeal decisions do not bind other councils. We flag that as interpretation, not rule.
How the nets sold in the UK measure up
Published product heights from UK sellers (named, not linked), read against the thresholds above:
| Product type (published heights) | Reading against the thresholds |
|---|---|
| Portable pop-up nets (2.1 to 2.4 m sold heights) | Below every Class E ceiling, including the 2.5 m near-boundary limit |
| Practice net walls around 2.1 m high | Below every Class E ceiling |
| Freestanding garden cages at 3.0 m | Above the 2.5 m near-boundary limit: under a Class E reading it needs to sit more than 2 m from the boundary, and 3.0 m touches the "any other case" ceiling |
| Freestanding cages around 3.1 m (10 ft) | Above the 3 m "any other case" ceiling of Class E |
| Club and range netting, 6 to 10 m published heights | Far outside householder permitted development: a standard planning application, sometimes with conditions (one published committee report imposed a dark green colour) |
Product figures: portable and pop-up nets are sold at 2.1 to 2.4 m (Forb / Net World Sports), practice net walls at about 2.1 m and freestanding folding cages at 3 m (Huck), freestanding cages at 10 ft (Forb), and club or driving-range perimeters at 6 to 10 m in a published installer guide (Collins Nets). Notably, none of the netting sellers' own guides mentions planning at all: that silence is why this page exists.
Clubs and driving ranges: outside the garden rules entirely
Householder permitted development only covers homes. Range and club perimeter netting at 6 to 10 m goes through a standard planning application, where committees can and do attach conditions: one published committee report required the netting to be dark green. If you are specifying a range perimeter, the planning file and the netting specification should travel together; for the netting half, ourguide to published netting heights by sport collects the range figures (40 to 65 ft in the US sources), and ourmesh size chart andgolf barrier netting family document what the mesh and twine choices actually are.
The safe route, in order
Before any posts are concreted: put the question to your local planning authority in writing, or apply for a Lawful Development Certificate, and keep the answer. Check the extra restrictions first if the property is listed, in a conservation area or on designated land. Scotland and Wales have their own permitted development orders: this page is England only. And if the answer changes the design, change the net, not the answer: panels are cut to size, so a 2.4 m compliant net costs no more per square metre than a 3 m non-compliant one.
How we compiled this guide
The height thresholds are quoted from the General Permitted Development Order 2015 as published on legislation.gov.uk and from the government's householder technical guidance; the appeal analysis is from the published inspector's decision APP/M0655/C/18/3206121; product heights are from the sellers' own published pages, credited by name. Established rules and our interpretation are labelled as such throughout. This page reports sources; it is not legal advice.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need planning permission for a golf net in my garden?
In England, it depends on height, position and permanence, and there is no blanket yes or no. A published appeal decision treated a garden practice cage on concreted 3.6 m posts as a building needing permission, because it stood over 2.5 m tall within 2 m of the boundary. Nets sold as genuinely portable at 2.1 to 2.4 m sit below that threshold. There is no published ruling on portable golf nets as such: confirm with your local planning authority before concreting posts.
How high can a garden structure be without planning permission in England?
Under the General Permitted Development Order 2015, Schedule 2, Part 1, Class E: no more than 2.5 m within 2 m of a boundary, 3 m in any other case, 4 m with a dual-pitched roof, single storey only, and nothing forward of the principal elevation. Fences, gates, walls and other means of enclosure (Part 2, Class A) are capped at 2 m, or 1 m next to a road used by vehicular traffic.
Does it matter that the net comes down and only the posts stay?
Less than most people assume. In the Warrington appeal about a garden cricket cage, the net itself was removable, and the inspector still ruled the structure a building, noting that permanent in the context of planning control does not necessarily mean everlasting. Size, degree of permanence and physical attachment were weighed together.
Is a golf net a fence (2 m limit) or a building (2.5 to 4 m limits)?
The two regimes have different ceilings, and no published decision settles which one a garden golf net falls under. In the closest published case, a net cage on posts was analysed as a building under Class E, not as a means of enclosure under Class A. Treat that as the cautious reading, not as a rule.
What is the safest route before installing a garden golf net on posts?
Ask your local planning authority in writing, or apply for a Lawful Development Certificate, before any posts are concreted. Rules differ in Scotland and Wales, and listed buildings and designated land carry extra restrictions. We supply the netting and document its specification; your council decides the planning question.
Specifying a garden cage or a range perimeter?
Tell us the dimensions, the setting and what your council said. We reply within 2 business days with the documented mesh and twine combination in writing: we quote the netting and panel sewing, your council rules on the planning. See theSpec Finder or go straight to thequote form.
We reply within 2 business days with questions or a documented quote.