Architectural drawings in Richmond upon Thames

The guidance Richmond expects your drawings to follow

The development plan is the Richmond Local Plan 2024-2039, adopted in 2,025. Three supplementary documents matter for homes: the House Extensions and External Alterations SPD, the Design Quality SPD and the Residential Development Standards SPD.

The extensions document is the one we open first. It sets out how a rear or side addition should relate to the original house, so we show each extension against the parent building in section and elevation, not only in plan.

That clarity helps the case officer, and it helps you, because the council can see at a glance that the guidance has been followed.

The Residential Development Standards document matters most for conversions and new homes, where room sizes and amenity space are measured. For ordinary householder work, the extensions guidance does most of the talking.

Richmond planning decisions: speed and outcomes

The council decided 1,302 householder applications in the latest twelve months of figures. It granted 83.3 per cent and decided 98.3 per cent inside eight weeks or an agreed extension.

For larger home extensions under prior approval, the council granted 78 and refused 30. A house with the right plot can sometimes avoid a full application, but the refusals show the route needs care.

These figures describe past decisions across the borough only. We treat them as context for choosing a route, never as a promise.

Our own check is simple: we read the decisions made on your road, and we read the officer reports for the refusals as well as the grants. A refusal on your terrace usually explains exactly where the line was drawn.

Housing and values across the borough

Of the 80,705 households here, 59.8 per cent live in a house or bungalow and 62.4 per cent own their home. A terraced house averaged £915,886 in the latest Land Registry figures.

At that value, careful design pays for itself: a rear extension or loft that suits the house and satisfies the council protects the investment as well as adding space.

Where a house has a long rear garden, its size often decides whether a garden room or a rear extension is the better use of money. We show both options in the design stage, with costs of the drawing work fixed.

Levies and charges to plan for

Richmond falls in band 1 of the Mayor of London's levy, at £96.97 per square metre for permissions granted this year. The borough's own schedule, the Borough CIL Charging Schedule, sets £418.41/m² (Residential Higher Band); £317.99/m² (Residential Lower Band).

We note any liability for your project in the next-steps pack.

Our fixed fees are published up front, including VAT, and the council's fees are paid to the council separately. No surprises arrive after the survey.

Architectural drawings in Richmond upon Thames: where to start

Period houses often start with planning drawings in Richmond upon Thames with a short heritage note. For a new second storey or a roof change, double-storey extension drawings in Richmond upon Thames and hip-to-gable loft conversion drawings in Richmond upon Thames are the usual starting points.

Garden buildings are common here too, and garden room drawings in Richmond upon Thames start from £495. For lower ground floors, ask about a basement impact assessment in Richmond upon Thames.

Across the river and the borough boundary, see our council pages for Hounslow, Kingston upon Thames and Wandsworth.

Every Richmond job gets an independent check by a second chartered technologist before anything is submitted. If the council asks for changes, we redraw at no charge until approval.