What consents do I need to carry out building work in my home?

What consents are required, such as planning permission or a building warrant, is one of the factors that should be considered in the early stages of thinking about doing work to your home. Architectural design must comply with planning and building regulations, and this may impact on the finished design and your budget.

When you make an enquiry to us, we will offer you a free consultation during which time we will inform you which consents will be required for your specific project and our corresponding fees for obtaining these on your behalf.

Planning and building regulations are open to interpretation by individual officers appointed by the council. But our numerous years of experience allow us to have an understanding on what designs are likely to comply or not with the regulations, and to liaise with officers on interpretation, if required.

Building Warrant

For almost all building work you will require a building warrant. This is a certificate granted by the local council which demonstrates that the planned work will be carried out in accordance with the building regulations. These regulations ensure that building works comply with, for instance, fire safety and energy efficiency.

In order to apply for a building warrant, detailed technical drawings of the proposed works need to be submitted to the building control department of your local council. We would prepare these drawings for you as part of our services, drawing on our extensive knowledge of the building regulations and technical expertise and submit the application on your behalf, along with other required documentation such as the warrant specification.

Your application will then be appointed to a building control officer. Standard procedure is for the officer to send a ‘warrant points report’ to the architectural designer with a request for further information, once he or she has reviewed the application. We will then liaise with the officer until the consent has been granted.

Later, an officer will carry out an inspection of your completed work to ensure it has been carried out in accordance with the building warrant.

The council charge a fee for lodging this application which is a sliding scale based on the value of the works being carried out. For example, if your total project value is £50,000, the council’s warrant fee would be £719.

We would inform you of our fees for preparing and submitting the application package in our fee proposal before you appoint us.

Planning Permission

Your project may also require planning permission. Usually this is if the works affect the external appearance of a building but not always. We would advise you when you make an enquiry to us whether your project requires planning permission or not. Planning permission, like a building warrant, is a certificate granted by your local council. Architectural drawings need to be submitted showing the existing property and proposed works. We would prepare these and submit the application on your behalf along with any other information relevant to your project such as a planning design statement, or photos. A planning officer would then be appointed to your application and we would liaise with this officer until the consent has been granted.

The council charge £202 for a standard householder planning application.

We would inform you of our fees for preparing and submitting the application package in our fee proposal before you appoint us.

Listed Building Consent

If you live in a listed building (a building with historic interest), listed building consent must be applied for from the planning department of your local council. We would carry out a search when you approach us to find out if your property is listed or not. The process is similar to that of applying for planning permission. Architectural drawings need to be submitted showing the existing property and proposed works. We would prepare these and submit the application on your behalf along with any other information relevant to your project such as a planning design statement, or photos. A planning officer would then be appointed to your application and we would liaise with this officer until the consent has been granted.

The council do not charge a fee for lodging a listed building consent application and it should be noted that not applying for listed building consent when it is required is a criminal offence.

We would inform you of our fees for preparing and submitting the application package in our fee proposal before you appoint us.

Other Consents

We will advise you if any other consents are required before you appoint us. For example, an Amendment of Warrant (where previous works have not been carried out in accordance to the original building warrant), or consents from other council departments such as Highways.

We can also provide assistance submitting appeals to the planning department where necessary in cases where planning permission has not been approved.

Our bespoke service means we will help you with whatever consents are required for your unique circumstances.