Architectural drawings in Merton

Heritage in Merton

Merton publishes 28 conservation areas. In those areas permitted development is reduced and a loft enlargement under Class B is not permitted development.

Historic England lists 243 entries: 3 at Grade I, 11 at Grade II* and 228 at Grade II. 23 entries are on the Heritage at Risk Register, and the borough has 3 scheduled monuments.

Merton's Article 4 directions are mapped by the council, so we check that map for every address and record the result in your constraints note.

Merton's plan and its guidance

The current plan is the Merton Local Plan 2024, adopted in 2,024. The supplementary documents that matter to homeowners are the Borough Character Study SPD, the Basement and subterranean SPD and the Small sites toolkit SPD.

The council lists no dedicated householder extension or roof guide, so design policy comes mainly from the plan and the character study. We draw the existing street pattern into the elevations so the case officer can see how the scheme fits.

The subterranean guide matters if you want a basement or a deep lower ground floor. That route needs a structural report from the outset.

Merton's decision times

Merton decided 759 householder applications in the latest twelve months. The share decided on time was 85.2 per cent, so allow for the chance of a delay.

Prior approval for larger rear extensions had 22 grants and 80 refusals in the national statistics, so we explain that gap before a client picks the route.

These figures are history and not a forecast.

Levy, shared houses and other costs

The Mayor of London's levy is band 2, at £72.73 per square metre this year. Merton's own schedule is the Merton CIL Charging Schedule and has two zones, with a higher rate in the Wimbledon, Raynes Park and Colliers Wood zone.

Merton has used an Article 4 direction on small shared houses, so if you plan a change from a family house to an HMO, we confirm the current position for your ward first.

Working with us on a Merton scheme

Merton owners often arrive with a clear idea of the space they want. We start by checking what the address allows: conservation area, listing, any Article 4 area on the council's map, and whether the house still holds its permitted development rights.

A measured survey follows, then design options, usually one or two at the start so you can compare cost and light before the details are fixed. The final set is checked independently and issued to you for approval.

We then submit the application and respond to officer queries. Because decisions here are not always on time, we tell you at the outset to allow for a pause before work begins.

For a basement or a deep lower floor the subterranean guide applies, and we plan the structural input into the programme from the first week.

Services for Merton homes

Owners commonly ask for garden room drawings in Merton, wraparound extension drawings in Merton or loft conversion drawings in Merton. For a larger rear extension see prior approval drawings in Merton, and for the main application route see planning drawings in Merton.

See also our pages for Kingston upon Thames, Wandsworth and Sutton.