Approvals
Which council approves your extension?Suburb-by-suburb across the Hills District and the Strathfield ring
Why we made this
Some Sydney suburbs sit in two councils at once.
R&Q Interiors builds extensions and renovations across the Hills District and within about 10 km of Strathfield, and the first question on every job is which council assesses it — because that decides whether you are on a CDC measured in weeks or a DA measured in months.
Most suburb lists online state one council per suburb. Several suburbs do not work that way. Winston Hills is genuinely divided between the City of Parramatta and The Hills Shire, and a parcel there was transferred to The Hills Shire by gazettal in April 2026. Rouse Hill, Dural and Croydon each straddle a boundary. Silverwater is not split but changed council in the 2016 amalgamations, so older advice about it is simply wrong.
Check the address, not the suburb. The NSW Planning Portal spatial viewer returns the local government area, the zoning and the planning controls for a specific property. It is authoritative; this page is a starting point.
The Hills District
| Suburb | Council that assesses a DA | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Castle Hill | The Hills Shire Council | — |
| Baulkham Hills | The Hills Shire Council | — |
| Kellyville | The Hills Shire Council | — |
| Bella Vista | The Hills Shire Council | — |
| Norwest | The Hills Shire Council | — |
| Glenhaven | The Hills Shire Council | — |
| Rouse Hill | The Hills Shire Council | Straddles the Blacktown boundary — check your address |
| Dural | The Hills Shire Council | Straddles the Hornsby boundary — check your address |
| Winston Hills | Split: City of Parramatta / The Hills Shire | Genuinely divided. A parcel moved to The Hills Shire, gazetted April 2026 |
Strathfield and within about 10 km
| Suburb | Council that assesses a DA | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Strathfield | Strathfield Municipal Council | — |
| Homebush | Strathfield Municipal Council | — |
| Burwood | Burwood Council | — |
| Concord | City of Canada Bay | — |
| Five Dock | City of Canada Bay | — |
| Drummoyne | City of Canada Bay | — |
| Rhodes | City of Canada Bay | — |
| Ryde | City of Ryde | — |
| North Ryde | City of Ryde | — |
| Meadowbank | City of Ryde | — |
| Silverwater | City of Parramatta | Moved from the former Auburn council in the 2016 amalgamations |
| Newington | City of Parramatta | — |
| Lidcombe | Cumberland City Council | — |
| Auburn | Cumberland City Council | — |
| Ashfield | Inner West Council | — |
| Croydon | Inner West Council | Straddles the Burwood boundary — check your address |
Good to know
Questions about council and approvals.
Why does it matter which council assesses my extension?
It decides the pathway, the timetable and often the design. A Complying Development Certificate is assessed by a private certifier against the fixed criteria in the NSW Codes SEPP and is measured in weeks. A Development Application goes to the council that covers your land, is assessed against that council's own Local Environmental Plan and Development Control Plan, and is measured in months. Two identical houses on opposite sides of a council boundary can therefore face different controls, different notification requirements and different timetables. R&Q Interiors confirms which council and which pathway applies at the first site visit, before design money is spent.
How do I find out for certain which council my property is in?
Look the address itself up rather than trusting a suburb name. The NSW Planning Portal spatial viewer returns the local government area, the zoning and the planning controls for a specific property, and it is the authoritative source. Suburb-level lists — including the one on this page — are a starting point only, because several Sydney suburbs are divided between two councils and boundaries are occasionally moved by gazettal.
Which suburbs near R&Q Interiors sit across two councils?
Winston Hills is genuinely divided between the City of Parramatta and The Hills Shire, and a parcel near the Winston Hotel was transferred to The Hills Shire by gazettal in April 2026. Rouse Hill straddles the Blacktown boundary, Dural straddles the Hornsby boundary, and Croydon straddles the Burwood boundary. Silverwater is not split, but it changed hands — it moved from the former Auburn council to the City of Parramatta in the 2016 amalgamations, so older guidance about it is wrong.
Extensions in depth — approvals, second storeys, what moves the price +
Boundaries can be changed by gazettal, and several suburbs are divided — always confirm your own address on the NSW Planning Portal. This page is general information, not planning advice.