Party wall notice: the work in England and Wales you must tell your neighbour about

Knocking a wall out between your own kitchen and living room needs no conversation with anyone next door. Cutting into a wall that stands on the boundary between two houses, raising it, or digging near the foundations of the building next door is a different matter: it needs written notice. That is the Party Wall etc. Act 1996, and it applies in England and Wales. Scotland has separate rules.

What counts as a party wall?

A party wall stands on the land of two or more owners. It may form part of a building, or it may not: a garden wall between two plots is a party wall too. A wooden fence is not, and falls outside the Act entirely.

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There is also the party structure — a floor or other structure separating buildings or parts of buildings with different owners. For flats in the same block, that is the floor and ceiling between them.

One point is easy to miss: a party wall agreement is not planning permission and not building regulations approval. Those are separate consents and none of them replaces another.

Which work do you have to tell your neighbour about?

Three categories. Building on or at the boundary of the two properties. Working on an existing party wall or party structure. Digging below and near to the foundation level of their property.

The examples GOV.UK gives are specific: building a new wall, cutting into a party wall, making a party wall taller, shorter or deeper, removing chimneys from a party wall, and knocking down and rebuilding one.

Minor work is excluded. Plastering, adding or replacing electrical wiring or sockets, and drilling to put up shelves or cabinets need no notice.

On rights, the guidance is blunt in both directions: your neighbours cannot stop you making changes that are within the law, but they can affect how and when the works are carried out.

How far in advance must notice be given?

Between two months and a year before you plan to start. That window is set out in the guidance itself, and the notice has to say what you plan on doing.

Talking to your neighbour first is sensible, but a conversation is not a notice. Whatever you agree should be put in writing.

How long does a neighbour have to reply?

Fourteen days. Within that period the neighbour must let you know in writing whether they consent. They have three options: consent in writing; refuse consent, which starts the dispute resolution process; or serve a counter notice asking for additional works to be carried out at the same time. A counter notice must be served within a month of the first notice, and if the additional works benefit the neighbour, they pay for them.

The expensive trap is silence. You cannot assume that no response means agreement — the dispute resolution process starts on a missed deadline exactly as it does on a refusal.

Who pays for the work and for the surveyor?

You pay for building works you start on a party wall. Your neighbour may have to meet a share in two situations: where the work is needed because of defects or lack of repair, and where they asked for additional works that benefit them.

In a dispute, a surveyor is appointed — one agreed surveyor, or one each. You cannot act as your own surveyor. If your neighbour refuses or fails to appoint one, you can appoint a surveyor on their behalf.

The surveyors then agree a party wall award. It is a legal document setting out what work should happen, how and when it will be carried out, and who pays which part and how much, including the surveyors' fees.

Can a party wall award be appealed?

Yes, and the deadline is short: 14 days from receiving it. The appeal goes to a county court, where you file an appellant's notice explaining why you are appealing.

What applies once the work starts?

Two duties on the person building: avoid causing unnecessary inconvenience, and protect the neighbour's property from damage caused by the works, fixing or paying for any damage that is caused.

There is a duty running the other way as well. The neighbour must allow surveyors and workmen access to their property during usual working hours — on 14 days' notice, except in an emergency.

Three things to check before you book a builder

Whether the wall you are touching stands on the boundary. Whether your work appears in the list the guidance sets out. And whether you still have two clear months before the planned start date, because a notice served a week in advance is not a valid notice.