Reference Data · New South Wales
Hornsby Shire DCP: the dwelling controls, as published.
7 controls for low-density residential — dwelling houses, taken from Hornsby Development Control Plan 2024, Part 3 Residential — Section 3.1 (Dwelling Houses and Dual Occupancies). As at 2026-08-29.
NSW has no statewide dwelling setback or site-coverage standard. The LEP sets zone, height and FSR; the numbers that shape a build sit in each council's DCP — here, the 7 that Hornsby Shire publishes numerically. Anything its DCP assesses on merit rather than a fixed number is absent from this table: not a zero, and not a permission.
Hornsby Shire — published dwelling controls
| Control | Published value | Qualifier |
|---|---|---|
| Front setback | 6 m | 6m to local roads; 9m to designated roads (Annexure C list). Exceptions on local roads: where an existing setback of 7.6m or greater exists it may need to be maintained to keep streetscape character; 3m in Brooklyn Road, Brooklyn; 9m to roads in Cherrybrook. (Attached dual occupancy front setback = 7.6m, or 9m if a designated road or in Cherrybrook.) |
| Secondary street setback | 3 m | — |
| Side setback | 0.9 m | — |
| Rear setback | 3 m | — |
| Site coverage | 65% ≤250 m² → 60% ≤300 m² → 55% ≤450 m² → 50% ≤900 m² → 40% ≤1500 m² → 30% | — |
| Landscaped area | 10% ≤300 m² → 15% ≤450 m² → 20% ≤600 m² → 30% ≤900 m² → 40% ≤1500 m² → 45% | — |
| Private open space | 24 m² | — |
Source: Hornsby Development Control Plan 2024, Part 3 Residential — Section 3.1 (Dwelling Houses and Dual Occupancies). Clauses: 3.1.1 Scale (Table 3.1.1-b Maximum Site Coverage), 3.1.2 Setbacks (Table 3.1.2-a Minimum boundary setbacks), 3.1.3 Landscaping (Table 3.1.3-a Minimum Landscaped Area), 3.1.4 Open Space (Table 3.1.4-a Minimum Private Open Space). Open the source DCP.
Scope: R2 dwelling houses. These are the controls for R2, Hornsby Shire’s low-density residential zone. Do not apply these figures to a dual occupancy, duplex, secondary dwelling or multi-dwelling housing development — those are assessed under different standards, which Feasibly has not codified.
What qualifies these Hornsby Shire controls?
- Applies to R2 Low Density Residential dwelling houses (HDCP 2024 Part 3, Section 3.1 covers dwelling houses and dual occupancies for prescribed residential land uses identified by the HLEP zone and height maps).
- Site coverage clause k overrides the tier for a single-storey dwelling + ancillary development: max 55% where the lot is at least 450m2 but less than 500m2 (i.e. within the 450–899m2 = 50% band). Site-coverage tiers begin at 200m2; no % is stated for lots under 200m2.
- Rear setback: 3m applies to portions up to 1 storey; any 2-storey element must be setback 8m from the rear boundary. Recorded rear_setback_m = 3 (base single-storey minimum).
- Side setback: 0.9m applies up to 1 storey; a 2-storey element must be 1.5m. Recorded side_setback_m = 0.9 (base single-storey minimum).
- Front setback is road-list dependent: 9m applies to 'designated roads' (Annexure C list) and specific localities differ (3m Brooklyn Rd Brooklyn; 9m Cherrybrook roads; conform to a prevailing 7.6m+ line where established). The 6m value is the standard local-road setback.
- Private open space is keyed on LOT WIDTH at the building line, not lot area: 24m2 principal POS (min dimension 3m) for lots 10m or wider (recorded as pos_min_sqm); 16m2 (min dimension 3m) for lots 6–9m wide. pos_small_site fields left null because the schema expects an area threshold, not a width threshold.
- Front-yard landscaping proportion (clause 3.1.3 d): 25% of the front yard for lots less than 18m wide, 50% for lots greater than 18m wide — this is a front-yard sub-requirement, separate from the overall Table 3.1.3-a minimum landscaped area.
- landscaped_deep_soil = false: the control is a 'minimum landscaped area' (soft/permeable landscaping) but is not termed 'deep soil' in the DCP.
- Source is the adopted Part 3 (FINAL 23 June 2025) as tabled in the GM 11/06/2025 business paper; the identical council copy at www.hornsby.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/138766/HDCP-Part-3-FINAL-23-June-2025.pdf returned a JS challenge page via the fetch helper, so the businesspapers PDF (same content) was fetched and read.
Wondering how this compares with asking an AI to read the scheme? We wrote that up here.
How reliable is this Hornsby Shire DCP data?
These values were machine-extracted from the source DCP and have not been independently re-checked. Treat them as screening grade: good enough to compare councils and to know which questions to ask, not a substitute for reading the clause before you rely on it. This is a different and lower tier of confidence than our Victorian zone schedules, which are read and verified from the source planning scheme by a person. We do not present the two as equivalent.
A council's DCP can be amended at any time and this page reflects the document as at 2026-08-29. Where a control is absent above, the DCP either sets no number or assesses that parameter on merit.
This information is provided for research and preliminary screening only. It does not constitute professional planning, legal or architectural advice. Always verify with Hornsby Shire before making decisions.
Hornsby Shire planning controls — common questions
Do these Hornsby Shire controls apply to a duplex or dual occupancy?
No. The figures on this page are Hornsby Shire’s dwelling-house controls. A dual occupancy, duplex, secondary dwelling or multi-dwelling housing development is assessed under different standards — Feasibly has not codified those, so do not apply the numbers above to one.
Which zone do these Hornsby Shire controls apply to?
R2 Low Density Residential — Hornsby Shire’s low-density residential zone. Confirmed against the zones the Hornsby Shire LEP actually contains. This page presents the low-density residential case; some DCP sections also cover other residential zones, and the source above names the zones it applies to.
What planning controls does Hornsby Shire publish for dwellings?
Hornsby Shire publishes 7 dwelling controls in Hornsby Development Control Plan 2024, Part 3 Residential — Section 3.1 (Dwelling Houses and Dual Occupancies): front setback, secondary street setback, side setback, rear setback, site coverage, landscaped area, private open space. Each value and its clause reference is listed on this page, as at 2026-08-29.
Does NSW have a statewide dwelling setback standard?
No. The Local Environmental Plan sets zone, building height and floor space ratio, but the numbers that shape a dwelling — setbacks, site coverage, landscaped area and private open space — sit in each council’s Development Control Plan. That is why these figures are published per council rather than per state.
How reliable are these Hornsby Shire figures?
They are machine-extracted from Hornsby Development Control Plan 2024, Part 3 Residential — Section 3.1 (Dwelling Houses and Dual Occupancies) and have not been independently re-checked, so treat them as screening grade — good enough to compare councils and to know which questions to ask, not a substitute for reading the clause. This is a lower confidence tier than our Victorian schedules, which a person reads and verifies from the source scheme.
Do these controls apply to every property in Hornsby Shire?
No. These are the council-wide published figures for low-density residential — dwelling houses. The zone, any overlays and the consent triggers that actually apply depend on the individual parcel, and a control absent from this page means the DCP either sets no number or assesses that parameter on merit — not that the requirement is zero.
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