Extension Architecture

Most extension projects in Hounslow run into trouble before an architect has drawn a single line. The mistake happens earlier. An assumption is made about permitted development. A builder is called before the planning position is confirmed. A design brief gets fixed before anyone has checked what the specific address actually allows. Watch our Hounslow architects to see real TW projects from first survey through planning to finished build. The Permitted Development Assumption This is the mistake that comes up most consistently across TW3, TW4, TW5, TW7, and TW8. Hounslow has conservation areas in parts of Isleworth, Brentford, and Chiswick borders. It has Article 4 Directions on specific streets that remove permitted development rights independently of conservation area status. And it has a varied housing stock where what applies to one property on a street does not automatically apply to the next. The standard permitted development limits for single storey rear extensions are 3 me...

  Most bexley architects will tell you the borough has a genuine advantage when it comes to extending a house. Full permitted development rights survive on plenty of streets, letting a lot of projects skip a formal planning application entirely. Old Bexley doesn't quite follow that pattern. Why DA5 Feels Different From the Rest of the Borough Bexleyheath and Barnehurst, covered by DA6 and DA7, are dominated by 1930s semis with fairly consistent plot depths and roof pitches. Old Bexley, in DA5, has a different character entirely, older Georgian and Victorian properties sitting within a conservation area that Bexley Council treats with more scrutiny than the newer suburban streets nearby. That difference matters because generic advice about Bexley extensions, the kind that talks about the borough's relatively relaxed permitted development picture, doesn't automatically apply here. Old Bexley genuinely plays by a different set of assumptions. What Conservation Area Status ...

A loft conversion sounds straightforward until you start asking the right questions. How much headroom do you actually have. What roof structure are you working with. Does your street have permitted development rights or has an Article 4 Direction removed them. Hounslow has a varied housing stock across TW3, TW4, TW5, TW7, and TW8, and the answers to these questions vary significantly depending on exactly where you live. Watch our Hounslow architects   project video to see real TW loft projects from first survey through to finished room. The Roof Structure Question That Decides Everything Before any drawings, before any quotes, before any planning conversation, someone needs to go into your loft with a tape measure. Two things matter most. Head height at the ridge and roof structure type. Most properties built before the 1960s across Hounslow have traditional cut roofs. These have individual rafters and are well suited to conversion. Properties built after the 1970s increa...

  Two houses. Same SW19 postcode. Same street. One extends without planning permission. The other gets enforcement action for doing the same thing. That is not a hypothetical. It happens in Wimbledon because Article 4 Directions do not follow postcode boundaries. They follow street boundaries. Sometimes they follow one side of a street. The family at number 14 can extend under permitted development. The family at number 15 cannot. Watch our Wimbledon architects project video to see how Extension Architecture has navigated this across 45 completed SW19 and SW20 projects. The Street Level Rule That Changes Everything Article 4 Directions in Wimbledon remove permitted development rights on specific streets. Not specific postcodes. Not specific conservation areas. Specific streets. A rear extension up to 3 metres deep on a terraced house is automatic in most of London. On an Article 4 street in SW19 it needs a full planning application to Merton Council. The 8 week decision timeline a...

Extension Architecture is a RIBA chartered and ARB registered architectural practice based at 231 Roehampton Lane, SW15. We have completed 42 projects across Putney and currently manage 60 live planning applications with Wandsworth Council. Our planning approval rate is 98% across 2,220 projects in London and Surrey. If youre looking for architects Putney with a verifiable local track record, those numbers represent 17 years of continuous practice in this specific part of south west London. You can also watch our Putney architects project video to see completed local projects from survey through to finished build. Do I Need Planning Permission for a House Extension in Putney? Often yes. Many Putney streets have Article 4 Directions that remove permitted development rights. A full planning application to Wandsworth Council is required even for modest rear extensions on these streets. Putney has more than a dozen conservation areas. These include West Putney, Putney Heath, Putney L...

Most homeowners researching an extension read guides. Few get to watch an actual project unfold. Architects in Hammersmith working through a real build, filmed from first survey through to completion, offer something a written guide simply can't. Seeing the sequence in order tends to answer more practical questions than any checklist could. What Makes Hammersmith Different From Neighbouring Boroughs? Hammersmith and Fulham share a planning authority, but the housing stock across the borough varies considerably. Victorian and Edwardian terraces dominate much of W6, while pockets of more contemporary development sit closer to the river. A few things shape almost every project here: Conservation coverage : the borough holds 13 designated conservation areas, each with its own specific guidelines. Article 4 restrictions : many streets carry directions removing standard Permitted Development rights. Narrow plots : Victorian terraces leave limited room to extend, making design efficienc...