Reference Data · New South Wales
Northern Beaches DCP: the dwelling controls, as published.
5 controls for low-density residential — dwelling houses, taken from Warringah Development Control Plan 2011 — Part B Built Form Controls (B4 Site Coverage; B5/B6 Side Setbacks; B7 Front Setbacks; B9 Rear Setbacks; B3 Side Boundary Envelope) and Part D Design (D1 Landscaped Open Space and Bushland Setting; D2 Private Open Space). As at 2026-08-05.
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. Below are the 5 controls Northern Beaches publishes numerically. Anything its DCP assesses on merit rather than a fixed number is simply absent from this table — it is not a zero, and it is not a permission.
Northern Beaches Council — published dwelling controls
| Control | Published value | Qualifier |
|---|---|---|
| Front setback | 6.5 m | Actual value is read from the DCP 'Front Boundary Setbacks' Map; 6.5m is the standard R2 front setback referenced in B7 (corner/double-frontage exception). The front setback area must be landscaped and generally free of structures other than driveways, letter boxes, fences. |
| Secondary street setback | 3.5 m | — |
| Rear setback | 6 m | — |
| Site coverage | 30% ≤3500 m² → 20% | — |
| Private open space | 60 m² | — |
Source: Warringah Development Control Plan 2011 — Part B Built Form Controls (B4 Site Coverage; B5/B6 Side Setbacks; B7 Front Setbacks; B9 Rear Setbacks; B3 Side Boundary Envelope) and Part D Design (D1 Landscaped Open Space and Bushland Setting; D2 Private Open Space). Clauses: B3, B4, B5, B6, B7, B9 (Part B); D1, D2 (Part D). Open the source DCP.
Qualifications that change how these read
- Site coverage is DCP-Map-dependent: some areas are mapped at 33.3%. The 30% (<3,500m²) / 20% (≥3,500m²) rule applies where the map designates it — confirm the mapped site-coverage control for the specific parcel.
- Northern Beaches Council is an amalgamated LGA still running three legacy DCPs: Warringah DCP 2011, Manly DCP 2013, and Pittwater 21 DCP. This record codifies the Warringah DCP 2011 (former Warringah LGA — the largest of the three areas); properties in the former Manly and Pittwater areas fall under their own DCPs with different controls (e.g. Manly DCP 4.1 states front 6m / rear 8m and a side setback of one-third of adjacent wall height, and an open-space regime of 45-60% of site by mapped OS area).
- Warringah built-form controls (site coverage, front/rear/side setbacks, landscaped open space) are delegated to parcel-specific DCP Maps. The numeric values captured here are the standard R2 figures stated in the control text/exceptions, but the binding figure for any given site is read from the relevant DCP Map.
- Site coverage (B4): two mapped regimes — a flat 33.3% in some areas, and a lot-area split of 20% for allotments >=3,500m2 / 30% for allotments <3,500m2 in others. site_coverage_tiers captures the lot-area split; site_coverage_flat_pct left null because the DCP does not declare which map regime is the R2 default. Applies only to land shown on the DCP Site Coverage Map.
- Side setback (B5) is map-delegated with no fixed numeric value stated; some land is 'Merit Assessment' (B6, side_setback_m=null). Side Boundary Envelope (B3) separately requires siting within 45-degree planes projected from 4m or 5m above ground at the side boundaries (per map).
- Private open space (D2) is LGA-wide (applies to all land under Warringah LEP 2011) and varies by bedroom count, not lot area: 35m2 (1-2 bed) / 60m2 (3+ bed) per dwelling house. pos_min_sqm reflects the 3+ bedroom figure; pos_small_site_* left null because the reduction is bedroom-based, not lot-area-based.
- Landscaped open space (D1) minimum area is set by the DCP Map (no single stated %); minimum soil depth 1m; 'Bushland Setting' mapped areas require 50% of the site undisturbed. landscaped_flat_pct/tiers therefore null.
- Northern Beaches adopted Low and Mid-Rise Housing DCP amendments (Warringah/Manly/Pittwater) commencing 15 September 2025; these primarily affect medium-density/dual-occupancy layout, deep soil and tree-planting controls rather than the single dwelling-house figures above.
- Source fetched live from the council eServices online DCP viewer (eservices.northernbeaches.nsw.gov.au) via the fetch-dcp helper; deep-link section IDs (hid) are noted per excerpt for reviewer verification. Direct DCP PDFs on the shared-drupal S3 host were Zyte-banned (520) and AustLII serves only non-fetchable PDF wrappers.
How this was compiled, and how far to trust it
These values were extracted from the source DCP and then independently checked against it — one of 28 of 86 councils on this site verified that way. 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 2026-08-05. 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 Northern Beaches Council before making decisions.
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