Planning an extension, loft conversion or basement? If your works touch a shared wall, sit on the boundary, or involve deeper excavations near a neighbour, you’ll likely need to serve a Party Wall Notice under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996. Here’s a clear, no-nonsense guide to what notices are, when you need them, how to serve them correctly, and what happens next.
What counts as a “party wall” and related structures
A party wall is a wall shared by two properties—think the wall between semis or terraces. The Act also covers:
- Party structures inside buildings (e.g., floors/ceilings between flats).
- Party fence walls: freestanding masonry garden walls astride a boundary (not timber fences).
If your project could affect any of the above—or involves excavations close to a neighbour—read on.
When a Party Wall Notice is required
You must serve notice before starting notifiable works. In broad terms, that includes:
- Works to a party wall/structure (Section 2):
Cutting in steel beams for a loft, removing a chimney breast on the party wall, inserting a DPC, raising/rebuilding a party wall, attaching flashings, cutting away projections, etc.
Minimum notice: 2 months. - New walls at or up to the boundary (Section 1):
Building a wall right up to the boundary on your land, or proposing to build astride the boundary (the latter needs your neighbour’s written consent).
Minimum notice: 1 month. - Excavations near neighbouring structures (Section 6):
Excavating within 3 metres and deeper than your neighbour’s foundations, or within 6 metres where a 45° line from the bottom of their foundations would be cut.
Minimum notice: 1 month.
The Act applies in England and Wales. It sits alongside planning permission and Building Regulations (one does not replace the others).
The three Party Wall Notices (and what must be in them)
- Party Structure Notice (Section 3 for Section 2 works)
Describe exactly what you’ll do to the party wall/structure- Include Building Owner and Adjoining Owner names/addresses.
- State intended start date (respecting the two-month lead-in).
- Serve on all Adjoining Owners (freeholders + any long leaseholders).
- Line of Junction Notice (Section 1)
Say whether you intend to build up to the boundary (no consent needed, but notice required) or astride it (consent required).- Identify the wall’s position and construction.
- Serve at least one month in advance.
- Notice of Adjacent Excavation (Section 6)
This one must be accompanied by plans and sections showing your excavation’s location and depth relative to the neighbour’s foundations, plus any proposals to underpin/safeguard them.- Serve at least one month in advance.
Validity tip: Notices expire after 12 months, so don’t serve too early. For Section 6, missing drawings/levels makes the notice invalid.
How to serve a notice properly
- Service methods: deliver by hand, post, or email (only if the neighbour has agreed to email service and provided an address). Date the notice the day it’s served.
- Who to serve: every Adjoining Owner—this can include freeholders and qualifying leaseholders. In flats, that often means more than one notice.
- Good practice: speak to your neighbour first so the notice isn’t a surprise; attach outline drawings where helpful (mandatory for Section 6).
Your neighbour’s options (and deadlines)
After service, an Adjoining Owner has 14 days to respond:
- Consent in writing – you can proceed (once the statutory lead-in has passed) while still complying with Building Control/planning.
- Dissent – triggers the surveyor process and a Party Wall Award is required.
- No reply – treated as dissent after 14 days.
- Counter-notice – within one month, they can request reasonable additional or modified works (with fair cost sharing if it benefits them).
If there’s a dissent (or no response), the owners either appoint one impartial Agreed Surveyor or two surveyors (one for each), who select a third surveyor as a backstop.
What a Party Wall Award actually does
The Award is a legally binding document that regularises the notifiable works: what can be done, when and how, any protective measures, access arrangements, and how issues and costs will be handled during the works. It protects both sides and helps keep matters out of court.
Who pays?
In typical home projects, the Building Owner meets the reasonable costs of administering the Act and producing the Award, including the Adjoining Owner’s surveyor if they appoint one. Where works address shared disrepair, or an Adjoining Owner asks for extra works for their benefit, costs can be apportioned.
Common pitfalls that delay projects
- Using the wrong notice type (e.g., sending a Section 2 notice for excavations).
- Missing or wrong legal owner details (Land Registry names/addresses don’t match).
- Vague descriptions (“loft works”) rather than the specific notifiable operations.
- No Section 6 drawings/levels – that notice is invalid.
- Serving too late to hit your programme—or too early and letting the 12-month validity lapse.
Practical timeline (typical domestic project)
- Discuss proposals informally with neighbours.
- Prepare and serve correct notices (1–2 months before works, depending on section).
- If consent: wait out the notice period and proceed.
- If dissent/no reply: appoint surveyor(s); Award agreed/served; then proceed in line with the Award.
Want help preparing valid Party Wall Notices and keeping your project on schedule? We’ll tell you exactly which notice(s) you need, draft them correctly, serve them on all the right owners, and—if required—act impartially to get an Award in place so you can build with confidence.
Make it easy: have Simple Survey serve your notices
We prepare and serve correct, fully compliant notices across England & Wales, keep neighbour communications friendly, and—if there’s a dissent—coordinate the next steps so a fair Party Wall Award is agreed quickly.
Transparent, low pricing:
- Party Wall Notice service: £25 per adjoining ownership (multi-notice bundles discounted)
- Act administration as Agreed Surveyor (single surveyor): typically £300 fixed-fee (depends on complexity and number of notices/owners)
- Two-surveyor route (we act for the Building Owner): fixed-fee proposals from £325 for our side (we work to keep your neighbour’s surveyor’s hourly fees reasonable and contained)
Ready to get this right first time?
Email team@simplesurvey.co.uk and we’ll take it from here—fast, friendly, and fully compliant.