Is there a site plan template I can use?

Yes, as a checklist, but no template can draw the plan for you. A site plan template shows the parts every plan carries and where they usually sit on the sheet. It can’t know your lot: the boundary lengths, the easements, what is already built, or how far the new work sits from each boundary. So use a template for the layout, and take every number from your own lot’s records and a tape.

What parts does every site plan carry?

• a title block with the address and the lot and plan
• a north point and the scale
• the boundaries with their lengths, and the street
• every building and structure already on the lot
• the new work with its size and a label
• the distance from the new work to each boundary
• easements, sewer and stormwater
• the site cover and other areas the rules test

Councils add items of their own, so read your council’s checklist before you start. The post on what a site plan is explains why each part matters.

What goes in the title block?

Whatever identifies the land and the drawing: the street address, the lot and plan number, the owner’s name, what the drawing shows, the scale, the date, a revision letter and who drew it. A certifier matches the lot and plan to the title, so it has to be right. The post on your lot and plan number shows where to find it.

How is the sheet set out?

Fit the whole lot on the sheet at one stated scale, with room around it for the dimensions, and add a scale bar so the plan still reads if it is printed smaller. North usually points up. Shade the new work or draw it in a colour so it stands apart from what is there. Write every measurement that matters as a number, because nobody should have to measure the drawing to find it.

What does an example site plan show?

How a finished sheet reads, and little more. It was drawn for someone else’s block, so its boundaries, easements and distances belong to that block. Your council’s checklist is a surer guide, because that is what your plan is read against.

How does the plan change with each project?

The parts stay the same and the emphasis moves. A patio or carport shows the roof edge and the posts as well as the site cover once the roof is added. A shed shows its height as well as its size. A pool shows the barrier, every gate and the pump. A granny flat shows its distance from the house, the open space, the parking and the connections.

Reading it for your own lot

RapidSiteplan reads the council and building rules for your lot from its address, checks the design against them as you place it, lets you edit it as often as you like, and prints the site plan. Site plans and assessments in minutes. There is no blank sheet to fill in, because the plan starts from your own lot, with its boundaries and the buildings already on it.

Search your address, or see what the plan shows for a shed, carport or other outbuilding. The Townsville page lists what we hold for that council, and site plans by council covers the rest of Australia.

Common questions

Is there a site plan template I can use? There are many, and they work well as a checklist of the parts and the layout. None of them knows your boundary lengths, your easements or the distances the rules test. Those have to come from your own lot.

What does an example site plan show? It shows the lot with its boundary lengths, the buildings already there, the new work set apart from them, the distance to each boundary, a north point, the scale and a title block. The layout carries over to your lot, and the numbers do not.

Where can I find a site plan example? Start with your council’s lodgement checklist, because that is what your plan is read against, and many councils publish an example drawing with it. A certifier or drafter can also show you what they accept.

General information only, not building or legal advice, requirements vary by council and change over time; always confirm with your council or certifier.