Road adoption

For us to adopt a road it needs to meet our standards. You need to:

• set up a formal residents' association
• hire a competent engineer or consultant to advise
• hire a contractor familiar with street schemes.

You and the residents will have to pay all the costs. The engineer or consultant would assess and advise you on the following:

• street layout - including footpaths, places to turn round, road width, bends, slopes, visibility and junctions
• the standards the road was built to
• drainage proposals
• if any pipes or cables would need to be moved by service providers
• street lighting
• needs of disabled road users and pedestrians
• property boundaries and if any driveway changes would be required.

Once the road is adopted, we then own it and public notices are put up along the road.

Developer information

Developers can work on the existing roads and pavements as long as they meet the Section 278 legal agreement.

All Section 278 works must be designed and constructed by a consultant and a contractor who fulfil certain criteria. Please read through the developer worker checklist (PDF, 291.7 KB) which specifies the criteria for each case.

To adopt or work on an existing road this needs to be discussed with us, please call 03000 41 81 81.

For further information read the following guidance:

• advance payments codes (PDF, 797.7 KB)
• completing section 38 agreements (PDF, 769.3 KB) - before adopting a road
• completing section 278 agreements (PDF, 978.1 KB) - before changing a road.

Find out if a road is adopted

Read about public and private roads and find out if a particular road is adopted.