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What Do I Need

Prior to Extending or Converting your Home. Typically you will need a set of plans with all the required View's, Map's, Floorplans & full building specification to the latest approved standards, to ensure valid council applications, also Builders are reluctant to quote a price without these plans.

 

The following are council applications which may apply , all of which have their own separate fee's (see costs)

 

We have not included a list of endless confusing specifications / requirements, instead we have tried to explain things in layman's terms. We will gladly confirm which are applicable to your proposed development.

 

Planning Permission

You will require Planning permission for the majority of extensions / conversions, unless your proposal is covered by Permitted Development. (see below) Some moderate developments are exempt.

 The Government has produced a virtual house to advise on planning guidelines which can be viewed Here

 

Permitted Development.

Certain moderate extensions are allowable without the need for planning permission. Very basically these include; a single storey rear extension no more than 3m deep (or 4m for a detached property). A single storey side extension not wider than half the original house. Two Storey extensions (not more than 3m deep to the rear & not wider than half the original house to the side) where the extension is at least 2m from the boundary. Porches up 3 square metres, as long as it is at least 2m from a highway boundary. This is a very rough guideline, & other requirements will also have to be met, DO NOT take the information above as fact. These new rules came into effect in October 2008 & supersede any previous rules.

Please Note; just because planning permission may not be required, building control approval WILL still be required (in most cases).

Councils can advise if a proposal appears to be covered Permitted Development, but this is not an approval or legally binding, therefore you may want some official confirmation that what you are doing is OK. 

you can apply for a Certificate of  Lawful Development,  

There is no legal requirement for this, but quite often when people are selling properties that have been extended under permitted development, solicitors often ask for this as a minimum as a condition of sale.

 

Building Regulations

Most Extensions / Conversions require building regulation approval, Unless you are only checking to see if a proposal is feasible (planning only), Some Porches, detached garages & Conservatories are exempt.

 

Local Development Authority

This only applies to areas that have a separate development Committees like Letchworth & Welwyn that have local Heritage foundations. If your proposal is in an area like this, then an application will have to be made along side the Planning application.