Party walls and boundaries
Can a home survey make an award for a garden wall it photographed astride the boundary?
No. It can photograph the wall and describe cracks, leaning and the parts it could see, but it cannot make an award, decide who owns the wall, or serve notice. In England and Wales the Act can apply to certain work on a boundary, a fence is not that wall, and the Act does not apply in Scotland or Northern Ireland. The survey is not the notice.
Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Written for buyers in England and Wales unless this answer says otherwise. No named surveyor has signed this page. It is general guidance, not a report on your house, and not legal advice.
What is the fuller explanation?
GOV.UK distinguishes the party-wall procedure from ordinary condition comments. A masonry wall that appears to stand on the boundary can still be described by a surveyor who never opens the deeds. Title is your solicitor’s work. If you later build on or alter that wall, the Act may be relevant in England and Wales, and it will not be started by a photograph in this report.
Do not ask the condition rating to give you six inches of garden, and do not ignore a leaning wall because nobody has made an award. Repair of what is falling over is a building question. Ownership and any future notice are legal questions. There is no fee in this report for an award, and the surveyor should not be asked to invent one. Outside England and Wales, use a local solicitor rather than this Act.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Did you see a masonry wall, a fence, or both?
- Are you describing condition only?
- Are you deciding who owns the wall or making an award?
What are the typical next steps?
- Send the title question to the solicitor with the photograph.
- Send a leaning wall to someone who can look at the masonry.
- Do not serve notice because the survey took a picture.
Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.
Also asked about this
Is a timber fence included?
A fence can be described if it was seen. It is not a party wall under the Act, and a photograph of it is still not an award.
Should a buyer in Belfast use the English party-wall form because this wall looks shared?
No. Northern Ireland is outside the Act GOV.UK describes, and so is Scotland. Ask a solicitor qualified where the house stands.