We will visit you at home, or the site of the proposed development, to discuss your thoughts in detail and offer advice on your proposed design. Following that meeting we will prepare a firm priced quotation to do the proposed required drawing.
For the majority of the projects we will work to the design process below:
Once you have accepted our quotation, we will come back and carry out a measured survey of the property so that scaled drawings of the existing property can be produced. We will talk through your project with you again in more detail, so we have the information we need to prepare the design drawings.
We will draw up the design that we discussed and email you the initial design before we meet with you. We will visit you again with the initial sketches and refine the proposal to make sure that it reflects what you have in mind and make amendments to them if required. Because we now use 3D software, as well using paper drawings, we will come to see you with a laptop to explore the proposal in more detail. Our experience is that the 3D software we use makes visualising the project easier for our clients. It also means that we can make amendments on the spot to speed up the process.
We will email you PDF’s of the completed drawings and the paperwork. Once you are happy with the design of your proposal, we will then submit the drawings, and all required paperwork, to the Local Authority to gain Planning Approval or to confirm permitted development rights. A separate fee made payable to the Local Authority is required at this stage, we will advise you of the fee required for your type of development. You should allow 8 to 10 weeks for a planning decision to be granted from the submission date. If permission is refused, we can renegotiate on your behalf.
Once planning permission is gained an application can be made for Building Regulations Approval. These are drawings that cover the details of the construction of your development. They are more detailed than the planning application drawings and include the information that your builder will need to carry out the work. We will identify if any specialist input is required such as a structural engineer or an energy assessor at this stage. We have working relationships with these different specialists and can liaise with them on your behalf. Their fees will be paid direct by you. There will be a separate fee required at this stage to the Local Authority for your type of development. Building Regulation Approval takes approximately 3 to 5 weeks.