Underground car galleries in the Cotswolds and Oxfordshire

A National Landscape

The Cotswolds has been a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty since 1966. These areas were renamed National Landscapes in November 2023.

At about 790 square miles, the Cotswolds is the largest of the 46 such areas in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It runs from Wiltshire and Bath through Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire to Warwickshire and Worcestershire, and crosses 15 local authority areas.

In Cotswold District, 80% of the land lies within the National Landscape. The district's adopted Local Plan notes that no other district in England has a greater share of its land in such a designation.

What the landscape test asks

National policy, policy N4, gives substantial weight to conserving and enhancing the natural beauty of National Landscapes. Development there should be limited in scale and extent. Development in their setting should avoid or minimise harm.

A gallery below ground is well placed to meet that test, because it adds almost nothing to the view. The pavilion is kept small and built in the local stone where that suits the house. Lighting is low and shielded, since the policy names dark skies and tranquillity among these landscapes' special qualities.

Permitted development is tighter here too. In a National Landscape, outbuildings more than 20m from the house are limited to 10 square metres in total. So the pavilion goes into the full planning application with the gallery. Our planning permission guide explains why.

Listed houses and conservation areas

Cotswold District's adopted Local Plan records 4,991 entries on the statutory list of historic buildings. It also records 144 conservation areas, more than any other district in England.

Works that alter a listed house in a way that affects its character need listed building consent. When a council decides an application, the law requires special regard to preserving a listed building and its setting. In a conservation area, the council must pay special attention to its character or appearance.

So a Cotswold gallery almost always sits under the grounds, not the house. The pavilion is designed as part of the setting, in the way an orangery or a coach house would be.

Oxfordshire and the Oxford Green Belt

Around Oxford, the Oxford Green Belt crosses several council areas, including Cherwell, South Oxfordshire, the Vale of White Horse and West Oxfordshire. Where a house sits within it, the Green Belt tests apply as well.

National policy treats openness as an essential feature of the Green Belt. An extension must not be a disproportionate increase in size over the original building, and some inspectors count basement floorspace in that test. Engineering operations are not inappropriate where the impact on openness is minimised.

Oxfordshire is also home to Bicester Motion, a centre for automotive and aviation businesses. Specialists who look after fine cars are within reach.

Parkland, trees and the dig

Cotswold houses often sit in mature parkland. Each tree gets a root protection area under BS 5837, normally a radius of 12 times its stem diameter, and the gallery is planned around the ones worth keeping.

Many lanes here are narrow. The lorry route, passing places and timings are planned before work starts. Under the Highways Act 1980, a highway authority can recover the cost of extra repairs caused by extraordinary traffic. Our guide to a garage under the garden covers how the grounds are protected and restored.

What a Cotswold gallery can include

• A drive-through car lift inside a garden pavilion. Our residential car lift guide explains how it works.
• An independent drive-out ramp as the second route, set into a bank or a walled garden.
• Around 16 cars on a single level, about 4.5m down.
• Climate control, fire detection and security to insurer standards, as in our car vault guide.

Size, depth and ground set the budget. Our underground garage cost guide explains each driver.