Co. Wicklow · Wicklow County Council area

Granny Flats & Garden Homes in Bray, Co. Wicklow

Nua Living designs and builds ICF granny flats and garden homes in Bray, on the coast at the Dublin–Wicklow border, and in nearby Greystones, Enniskerry and Dún Laoghaire. A garden home gives a parent or a grown-up child a place of their own, close by. Every size has a fixed price, and the on-site structural build takes 5–10 days once your foundations are ready.

Check If My Garden Qualifies See fixed prices

Granny flats from: €93,900 + VAT
On-site build: 5–10 days
Exempt home sizes: 32–45 m²
Council to notify: Wicklow County Council

S.I. No. 340/2026 · Class 3A

Building a garden home in Bray: local planning notes

Bray is not among the Architectural Conservation Areas listed in the Wicklow County Development Plan 2022–2028, but the Bray Municipal District Local Area Plan 2018 makes protecting the town’s Victorian building stock and its seafront and promenade a priority, and many of the seafront’s Victorian buildings are protected structures. A protected structure’s status covers the land within its curtilage, so for a garden home behind one we confirm the position with Wicklow County Council first.

The plan traces Bray’s present form to the railway in 1854: the esplanade, wide boulevards such as Quinsborough Road, and villas, hotels and institutions between Main Street and the coast, while Little Bray and Bray Commons, north of the river, grew in a more piecemeal way. The county plan speaks of the characteristic Victorian seafront and terraces of Bray.

Most of Bray drains to the Shanganagh–Bray wastewater treatment plant, opened in 2013 with a design capacity of 186,000 population equivalent; the plan reported no capacity issues, and Uisce Éireann’s April 2026 register still shows it as green. Class 3A allows no separate connection, so a garden home links into the main house’s existing services.

The plan records four catastrophic floods from the River Dargle in about a century. The OPW’s Bray (River Dargle) Flood Relief Scheme, completed in 2018, protects 660 properties, but the plan warns that flooding cannot be completely eliminated and sets back development by up to 10 m from watercourses. Bray Head is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty with a Special Amenity Area Order, which the plan notes brings certain exempted developments within planning control. Parts of the town lie in County Dublin, under Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council. The Bray Municipal District is run from Bray Civic Offices on Main Street.

Sources for Bray

Checked 21 October 2026. Plans and designations change; we confirm what applies to your site at the free site visit.

The national conditions, which apply in Bray too

The national Class 3A exemption applies in Bray as it does across Ireland. A garden home of 32–45 m² can go ahead without planning permission when all of these hold:

It is a detached home of 32–45 m², measured on the external footprint, in the rear garden of your main house — counted together with any earlier Class 3 garden structures.
At least 25 m² of private garden remains for the main house.
It sits at least 0.6 m from every boundary, and its windows are at least 0.6 m from the boundary they face.
It has its own pedestrian access within the garden, with no new entrance onto the road.
It is no higher than 3 m (4 m with a tiled or slated pitched roof).
You live in the main house as your sole or main residence, and the garden home is never sold separately or let short-term.
Wicklow County Council is notified at least 14 days before work starts, with the location and Eircode of the property.
Work starts and finishes by 31 December 2030.

We check your site against every condition at the free site visit. Sizes above 45 m² need standard planning permission from Wicklow County Council, which we apply for on your behalf.

How the S.I. No. 340/2026 exemption works →

Fixed prices nationwide

Granny flat sizes & fixed prices in Bray

A build in Bray costs the same as anywhere we work: one fixed price per size, including design, build and full project management. Prices exclude site works, connections and professional fees. We quote those after your free site visit.

Bray price list: fixed prices for every size
Size & model	Fixed price	Bedrooms / use	Planning
33 m²1 Bed Granny Flat	€106,577incl. 13.5% VAT€93,900 + VAT	1 bedroom	Can be exempt*
45 m²1 or 2 Bed Granny Flat	€143,578incl. 13.5% VAT€126,500 + VAT	1 bed (2 bed possible)	Can be exempt*
48 m²2 Bed Granny Flat	€152,658incl. 13.5% VAT€134,500 + VAT	2 bedroom	Standard permission
25 m²Garden Studio	€78,315incl. 13.5% VAT€69,000 + VAT	Garden room · not for sleeping in	Exempt as garden room†

The 25 m² Garden Studio is a Class 3 garden room, not a home. It is for use with your home — an office, studio, gym or hobby room — and cannot be lived in or slept in without planning permission.

*Subject to site eligibility under S.I. No. 340/2026, Class 3A (32–45 m² in the rear garden, owner living in the main house, at least 25 m² of garden remaining, own access within the garden, 14-day notice to the council) — confirmed at your free site visit. Build time refers to the on-site structural build once foundations are ready; excludes design, planning and connections lead-time. Prices exclude site works, connections and professional fees. †Garden Studio: Class 3, Part 1, Schedule 2, Planning and Development Regulations 2001, as substituted by S.I. No. 338/2026. Not forward of the front wall; finishes to match the house if built to the side; not for human habitation. May not apply where planning conditions restrict exempt development. Counts towards the 45 m² Class 3A limit if you later add a garden home. Confirmed at your free site visit.

Full price list & what each price includes →

Concept floor plans

Layouts for Bray gardens

Our 10 concept floor plans run from 32 to 45 m², each drawn to scale so you can print it and mark it out in your garden. Every home is custom designed, so a plan is a starting point, not a limit.

For a long, narrow garden

Browse every floor plan

Bray FAQ

Garden homes in Bray: your questions

Do I need planning permission for a granny flat in Bray?+

In most cases, not for a garden home of 32–45 m². Bray follows the same national rules as everywhere else: under S.I. No. 340/2026 (Class 3A), a detached home of 32–45 m² in the rear garden of your main house is exempt from planning permission if at least 25 m² of garden remains, it sits 0.6 m from every boundary, it has its own access within the garden, you live in the main house, and Wicklow County Council is notified 14 days before work starts. The 33 m² 1 Bed Granny Flat and the 45 m² 1 or 2 Bed Granny Flat fit the band; the 48 m² 2 Bed Granny Flat needs standard permission, which we handle. The exemption runs until 31 December 2030, and we check your site free of charge.

Which council do I notify for a garden home in Bray?+

Bray is in the Wicklow County Council area, so that is the planning authority you notify. The Class 3A notification must reach the council at least 14 days before work starts, giving the location and Eircode of your property. Email plandev@wicklowcoco.ie, or post to County Buildings, Station Road, Wicklow. Wicklow County Council publishes its own notification form, linked on this page, and we prepare and file it for you as part of every exempt build. It is separate from the building control Commencement Notice, which goes on BCMS because a garden home is a new dwelling. If your home is near a county boundary, we confirm which council to notify at your free site visit.

How much does a garden home cost in Bray?+

Our prices are fixed nationwide, so a build in Bray costs the same as anywhere else: €93,900 (€106,577 incl. 13.5% VAT) for the 33 m² 1 Bed Granny Flat, €126,500 (€143,578 incl. 13.5% VAT) for the 45 m² 1 or 2 Bed Granny Flat and €134,500 (€152,658 incl. 13.5% VAT) for the 48 m² 2 Bed Granny Flat (+ VAT @ 13.5%), including design, build and full project management. The 25 m² Garden Studio, a garden room rather than a home, is €69,000 + VAT @ 13.5% (€78,315 incl. 13.5% VAT). Prices exclude site works, connections and professional fees. We quote those after your free site visit in Bray.

How long does a garden home build take in Bray?+

Once your foundations are ready, the on-site structural build takes 5–10 days. Primestructures’ own crew builds every home, with 10 years of ICF construction behind them. Design, planning and connections come before that: for an exempt size, the 14-day notification to Wicklow County Council and the building control Commencement Notice have to go in before work starts, and a larger size needs planning permission first. We give you a full timeline at your free site visit.

Around Bray

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Other towns in Co. Wicklow

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Start with your name and number so we can get back to you. Then check your garden and add any site details you know for your quote — the extra questions are optional. You deal with Nua Living throughout: one point of contact from your first call to handover. Primestructures’ own crew builds every home, with 10 years of ICF construction behind them.