Reference Data · New South Wales
Strathfield DCP: the dwelling controls, as published.
5 controls for low-density residential — dwelling houses, taken from Strathfield Consolidated Development Control Plan 2005 — Part A: Dwelling Houses and Ancillary Structures. 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 5 that Strathfield 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.
Strathfield, Municipality of — published dwelling controls
| Control | Published value | Qualifier |
|---|---|---|
| Front setback | 9 m | Primary street setback 9m (Table A.1). A primary street setback of less than 9m may be considered where the predominant front setback in the street is less than 9m, the proposed setback is not less than that of the existing dwelling, or it would not conflict with streetscape character. Battle-axe lots: 4.5m primary street frontage. |
| Secondary street setback | 3 m | — |
| Side setback | 1.2 m | assessed on merit below 12 m frontage |
| Rear setback | 6 m | — |
| Landscaped area | 35% ≤501 m² → 38.5% ≤601 m² → 41.5% ≤701 m² → 43% ≤800 m² → 45% ≤1301 m² | — |
Source: Strathfield Consolidated Development Control Plan 2005 — Part A: Dwelling Houses and Ancillary Structures. Clauses: 4.2.1 (FSR), 4.2.3.1 Street Setbacks (Table A.1), 4.2.3.2 Side and Rear Setbacks (Table A.2), 5.2.1 Landscaped Area (Table A.3), 5.2.3 Private Open Space. Open the source DCP.
Scope: R2 dwelling houses. These are the controls for R2, Strathfield’s low-density residential zone. Do not apply these figures to a dual occupancy, duplex, secondary dwelling or multi-dwelling housing development — those are set out separately. See the dual occupancy controls below.
What qualifies these Strathfield controls?
- Site coverage: no DCP site-coverage % control. Bulk is controlled by maximum FSR from the SLEP 2012 Floor Space Ratio Map (cl. 4.2.1) — map/LEP-dependent, not a numeric DCP standard, so site_coverage fields are null.
- Side setback is a formula: combined side setback = 20% of block width, distributed either evenly or unevenly, with a minimum 1.2m on each side. For irregular lots (frontage wider/narrower than rear) side setback = 25% of block width at each point. side_setback_m=1.2 records the stated per-side minimum.
- side_merit_below_frontage_m=12: a variation to the minimum side setback may be considered for undersized/irregular allotments, e.g. blocks less than 12m wide.
- Secondary street setback of 3m applies where the main entrance is from the secondary frontage (Table A.1). Separately, where the side of a dwelling/garage/carport faces the secondary frontage the minimum is 1.5m (Table A.2).
- Battle-axe lots have a 4.5m primary street (front) setback instead of 9m.
- Garage/carport boundary setbacks (Table A.2): Nil for carports open on three sides; 0.5m from side/rear boundaries otherwise; 1.5m where facing a secondary frontage.
- Landscaped-area tiers (Table A.3) are stated only for sites 200–1300m²; no minimum landscaped-area % is stated for sites larger than 1300m². Tier upper bounds recorded as exclusive (e.g. the 45% tier covers 800–1300m²). At least 50% of the minimum landscaped area must be behind the building line, and at least 50% of the front yard maintained as deep-soil soft landscaping (the main % table is 'landscaped area', not deep soil, so landscaped_deep_soil=false).
- Private open space (5.2.3): no minimum POS area is specified for dwelling houses; only that it be a single parcel accessible from living areas, and that areas within setbacks count only if ≥3m wide. Terraces/decks must be ≥10m² (one dimension ≥3m) to be counted — a counting rule, not a POS minimum.
Wondering how this compares with asking an AI to read the scheme? We wrote that up here.
How reliable is this Strathfield 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 Strathfield, Municipality of before making decisions.
Strathfield dual occupancy (duplex) controls
A dual occupancy is assessed under the DCP’s specific land-use part, which overrides the dwelling-house controls only where it states something. Every row below is marked accordingly, so the ones that genuinely differ are visible rather than buried among the ones that do not.
| Control | Dual occupancy | vs dwelling house |
|---|---|---|
| Front setback | 9 m | restated, same figure |
| Secondary street setback | 3 m | restated, same figure |
| Side setback | 0.9 m | differs — dwelling house 1.2 m |
| Rear setback | 0.9 m | differs — dwelling house 6 m |
| Landscaped area | 40% | no dwelling-house equivalent |
| Private open space | 40 m² | no dwelling-house equivalent |
Controls not listed here fall back to the dwelling-house values on this record, which come from Part A Dwelling Houses and Ancillary Structures.
Source: Strathfield Consolidated Development Control Plan 2005 — Part B: Dual Occupancy Housing (adopted 1 September 2020). Clauses: Part B 2.2 Site requirements (Front setbacks 1–4; Side and rear boundary setbacks 1–3); 2.7 Open space and landscaping (1–4). Open the source DCP part.
- ⚠️ SIDE AND REAR SETBACKS ARE FAR SMALLER THAN FOR A DWELLING HOUSE, and are tiered by WALL HEIGHT rather than being flat: 900 mm from side and rear boundaries for walls less than 3.0 m high, and 1.5 m for walls greater than 3.0 m. The dwelling-house record carries 1.2 m side and 6 m rear, so applying those to a duplex would over-state both — the rear by more than five metres.
- The recorded 0.9 m is the low-wall case; a two-storey wall takes 1.5 m.
- FRONT SETBACK 9 m, the same as a dwelling house, but it may be less where the predominant setback in the street block is less than 9 m. On sites fronting two or more streets, 9 m is required to at least one frontage and the other must be not less than 3 m.
- The proportion of the frontage built upon must not exceed 50% or 90 m².
- Private open space 40 m² per dwelling with a minimum boundary length of 4 m, immediately adjacent to and directly accessible from the dwelling. Separately, a minimum 40% of the site area must be landscaped open space or private yard space; landscaped areas narrower or shallower than 2 m do not count unless densely planted for screening, and driveways, car parking and service areas never count.
- Part B does not state a minimum lot size or frontage for a dual occupancy; that test sits in the Strathfield LEP.
Strathfield planning controls — common questions
Do these Strathfield controls apply to a duplex or dual occupancy?
No — a dual occupancy is assessed under different standards, and this page publishes what Strathfield sets for one. side setback is 0.9 m for a dual occupancy against 1.2 m for a dwelling house; rear setback is 0.9 m for a dual occupancy against 6 m for a dwelling house. Controls not listed are not overridden and fall back to the dwelling-house figures. Source: Strathfield Consolidated Development Control Plan 2005 — Part B: Dual Occupancy Housing (adopted 1 September 2020).
Which zone do these Strathfield controls apply to?
R2 Low Density Residential — Strathfield’s low-density residential zone. Confirmed against the zones the Strathfield 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 Strathfield, Municipality of publish for dwellings?
Strathfield, Municipality of publishes 5 dwelling controls in Strathfield Consolidated Development Control Plan 2005 — Part A: Dwelling Houses and Ancillary Structures: front setback, secondary street setback, side setback, rear setback, landscaped area. 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 Strathfield figures?
They are machine-extracted from Strathfield Consolidated Development Control Plan 2005 — Part A: Dwelling Houses and Ancillary Structures 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 Strathfield?
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.
Check a specific address in Strathfield
These are the council-wide numbers. Zone, overlays and the consent triggers that actually apply depend on the parcel.
Free, no signup · zone, schedule, overlays and permit triggers for the parcel. Or create a free account for 20 lookups a month.
Compare across the state: every codified NSW council DCP in one table · all reference data