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The Party Wall etc. Act 1996

An introduction for non-practising construction professionals

Brian Aldridge BSc MRICS FFB

The Party Wall etc. Act 1996

• What is it• Where did it come from• What does it cover• What is and is not a Party Wall or Structure• Notices• Policing authority• Basic principles and operation

The Party Wall etc. Act 1996Some Simple Definitions

• Party Wall: a wall that is commonly shared between Owners

• Party Fence Wall: a dividing wall between two properties that is not part of a building such as a garden wall, but it does not include a timber fence

• Party Structure: a wider term, which could be a wall or partition or other structure separating buildings or parts of buildings approached by separate staircases or entrances (such as flats)

The Party Wall etc. Act 1996Some Simple Definitions

• Building Owner: the person or company that is proposing to undertake the works and is either the freeholder or has a lease for longer than one year.

• Adjoining Owner: the person or company who is the freeholder or leaseholder of the adjoining property.

What Is It

• A legal framework for:– preventing and resolving disputes in relation to

party walls, boundary walls and excavations near neighbouring buildings

– exercising rights and obligations between building owners and adjoining owners and

• Providing a Building Owner with additional rights going beyond ordinary common law rights.

Where Did It Come From• 400BC: 1ST Century BC Vitruvius sets down in his architectural

handbooks basic rules for dealing with party walls

• 1189: the City of London legislates that stonewalls are to be built astride boundaries between adjoining lands

• 1429 (1 March): First recorded Party Wall Award

• 1667: Following the Great Fire of London in 1666 an Act was passed introducing the expression “party wall” and providing rules for the construction of buildings in London including non-combustible materials, roof voids separated by non-combustible materials and minimum separation between openings in adjoining buildings

• 1855:The grandfather of the current Act is the Metropolitan Building Act Part 3, refined by the London Building Act of 1894 and the London Building Act 1930 which lead to the London Building Acts (Amendment) Act 1939

• 1997 (1 July): The 1996 Act comes into effect and applies to England and Wales but excludes Crown Property, Prince Charles’ property and the London Inns of Court.

What Does It Cover• The Act covers:

– Section 1: new building on or at the boundary of 2 properties– Section 2: work to an existing party wall or party structure– Section 6: excavation near to and below the foundation level of

neighbouring buildings• This may include:

– building a new wall on or at the boundary of 2 properties– cutting into a party wall– making a party wall taller, shorter or deeper– removing chimney breasts from a party wall– knocking down and rebuilding a party wall– digging below the foundation level of a neighbour’s property

What is a Party Wall

Type A wall is a "party wall“ if it stands astride the boundary of land belonging to two (or more) different owners -or separates two (or more) buildings

What is a Party Wall

Type A wall is a "party wall“ if it stands astride the boundary of land belonging to two (or more) different owners: being part of one building

What is a Party Wall

• Type A wall is a "party wall“ if it stands astride the boundary of land belonging to two (or more) different owners -

• or consists of a "party fence wall"

What is a Party Wall

• Type B wall is also a "party wall" if it stands wholly on one owner's land, but is used by two (or more) owners to separate their buildings

What is a Party StructureA wall or floor, partition or other structure separating buildings or parts of buildings approached by separate staircases or entrances; for example flats

Walls That Are Not Party Walls

• Boundary walls (a fence wall/garden wall built wholly on one owner’s land) and

• External walls (the wall of a building built up to but not astride the boundary)

Notices Under The Act

• New building on the boundary line between neighbouring pieces of land (Section 1 of the Act) - 1 months notice

• Work on existing party walls or structures (Section 2 of the Act) - 2 months notice

• Excavation near neighbouring buildings (Section 6 of the Act) - 1 months notice

The 3 Metre Ruleexcavate, or excavate for and construct foundations for a new building or structure, within 3 metres of any part of a neighbouring owner's building or structure, where any part of that work will go deeper than the neighbour's foundations

The 6 Metre Ruleexcavate, or excavate for and construct foundations for a new building or structure, within 6 metresof any part of a neighbouring owner's building or structure, where any part of that work will meet a line drawn downwards at 45° in the direction of the excavation from the bottom of the neighbour's foundations

Notice Validity Period

• Notices properly issued under the Act are only valid for a year, so do not serve too long before work is intended to start.

Policing Authority

“The Act contains no enforcement procedures for failure to serve a notice. However, if you start work without having first given notice in the proper way, Adjoining Owners may seek to stop your work through a court injunction or seek other legal redress.“

Example Projects

• Hampstead Heath• Staines

– No problem– Big problem

• Loft Conversion – London• Stirling Homes estate – was it worth it?• Stirling homes major disagreement

Further Reading

• Department for Communities and Local Government – Explanatory Booklet

• RICS Guidance Note – Party Wall Legislation & Procedure

• The Pyramus & Thisbe Club – The Party Wall Act Explained

• www.gov.uk/party-wall-etc-act-1996-guidance

The Party Wall etc. Act 1996

An introduction for non-practicing construction professionals

Brian Aldridge BSc MRICS FFB