Hornsby Shire Council
Private building certifier in Cherrybrook
Cherrybrook’s family homes keep changing as owners add pools, terraces and rooms. Our first step is checking whether the new metro precinct includes the lot, then sorting out which controls apply.
NSW 2126
Class 1 homes and Class 10 structures
Local rules
Family Homes and the Cherrybrook Metro Precinct
From orchards to family suburb
Orchard land started being subdivided for housing in the 1970s. Cherrybrook gained its own suburb status in 1995. The 2021 Census recorded 19,082 people in 6,210 private dwellings, 81.5% of them freestanding houses. Townhouses and similar attached dwellings reached a notable 17.2%, while flats were rare.
The station precinct
On 7 August 2026 the state government finalised the station precinct rezoning, changing the Hornsby LEP. The plan allows for nearly 10,000 more homes, plus a town centre and new open spaces beside the metro. That figure is a precinct total, not an entitlement for each lot. The precinct straddles two councils, and this page is about the Hornsby part.
Outside the precinct
Most streets keep their established residential controls. Under Hornsby's DCP, the minimum landscaped area grows with lot size, and it leaves out pools and hard paving. With subdivision dating from the 1970s, lots of houses are decades old, and owners tend to renovate instead of moving.
Approvals already in progress
An application lodged under the earlier controls may be handled differently from a fresh one. Ask early which version applies to your project.
Typical work
Common projects and how they get approved
What owners build here
Detached and attached homes lead to different work.
- Rear additions and covered terraces. Plan them with the whole yard, drainage and trees in view.
- Pools. Pool and paving both reduce landscaped area.
- Replacement garages. Check setbacks and driveway access.
- Granny flats. Possible on some larger blocks where area and width allow.
- Townhouse upgrades. Party walls, shared driveways and who owns adjoining outdoor areas need attention.
Combining lots for apartments is a separate, much larger task than a backyard project.
How approval usually works
Outside the precinct, a pool, addition or garage can often go through a CDC, a quick approval issued by a certifier under state codes. Designs that fall outside those codes go to Hornsby Shire Council for a DA, and the CC is issued afterwards.
Inside the precinct, rely on the controls finalised in 2026, not exhibition maps. For a community title home, get the scheme documents before planning work on shared land. On any lot, test the house, pool, alfresco and garage together. Each may look fine alone yet fail the landscaping limit as a group. Tree removal, stormwater and barrier rules for pools also need early thought. Send a survey, site plan and planning certificate first. CertifiBuild will review the full layout so there are fewer surprises later.
Our services
From approval to sign-off.
One certifier for your whole Cherrybrook job, from the first plan check to the occupation certificate.
Local questions
Questions we hear about this suburb.
No two lots in Cherrybrook are the same. Give us your address and we will check every map that affects it.
See the council pageIs my Cherrybrook home inside the new metro precinct?
Look at the final precinct maps, or order a planning certificate for your address, which will show it. The state locked in the station precinct rezoning on 7 August 2026, which amended Hornsby’s local environmental plan (LEP). Exhibition maps from before then are not a safe guide. Part of the precinct lies in a neighbouring council area, so make sure you are reading the Hornsby part. If an application was lodged under the old rules, ask early which version applies. Outside the boundary, most Cherrybrook streets keep their established house controls.
Can my Cherrybrook backyard fit a pool plus an alfresco?
Often, provided the whole layout works together. Hornsby’s development control plan (DCP) asks for more garden space on bigger lots, and neither a pool nor paved areas can be counted as garden. A pool may pass alone and an alfresco may pass alone, yet the two plus a new garage can push your Cherrybrook block under the limit. Draw every planned structure on one site plan and total the soft landscaping. Think about trees, stormwater and the pool barrier in the same sitting, so nothing needs to be redesigned later.
What extra checks apply to a Cherrybrook townhouse?
With about 17.2% of Cherrybrook homes being townhouses or similar, this comes up often. Start with the community or strata scheme documents. They show who owns the courtyards and paths next to you, how shared driveways work, and which walls are party walls. Building beside a common wall must keep fire separation between homes intact. Get the needed owner decisions in writing before you draw shared land into the plans. Then the building approval itself can follow, whether that is a fast-track certificate or a council application.
Building in this suburb?
Send us the address first.
We check the local maps for your lot, confirm the approval path and quote in writing.