Building regulations drawings in Hounslow

Character codes and older Hounslow houses

The council's Character, Sustainability and Design Codes SPD sets expectations for how new work fits the local street. It is a design guide for planning decisions, and it does not cover construction. Hounslow also has 3 Article 4 directions mapped as 3 areas, so some homes lose permitted rights, though most do not.

Older houses in the borough may have solid or thin cavity walls, original timber floors and shallow foundations. When we extend them, the new structure must be tied to the old without overloading it, and the existing wall must be checked where we open it up. The technical set shows each of these junctions in detail, and your engineer's structural calculations in Hounslow supply the sizes that we draw.

Lofts and extensions in a mixed borough

54 per cent of Hounslow households live in a house, and 45.7 per cent own their home, so the borough has plenty of both homeowners and flat dwellers. A loft over a two-storey house needs a protected stair, fire-resisting doors and a floor that carries bedrooms. A rear extension needs foundations, drains and a roof that can be built without disturbing the neighbours.

Where a flat or a converted house is involved, the drawings also show fire separation and the sound insulation under Part E. Aircraft noise is outside, but footsteps and voices between flats are inside, and the regulations treat them separately. We show each with its own detail.

If you are adding a bathroom or kitchen, we show the waste and water routes, because pipes on an external wall can freeze and pipes through the floor can leak into the ceiling below. These are small points that building control expects to see resolved on the drawing.

Planning outcomes, timings and notices

Hounslow decided 689 householder applications in its latest year and granted 78.5 per cent, with 97.8 per cent decided within eight weeks or an agreed extension. With that grant rate, it pays to settle the design at planning stage before the technical set is finished.

Building control body must decide a full plans application within 5 weeks, or longer if agreed in writing. Once approved, the rule is: Give notice of intention to start; work may start 2 days after the notice. A building notice lapses after 3 years if work has not started, which is a good reason to match the notice to a realistic programme.

Price, checking and levy

Building regulations drawings start at £845 with VAT included, fixed up front. A second chartered technologist checks every sheet and, if the examiner raises points, we revise at no extra charge.

Hounslow charges a zoned borough levy of £200/m² (CIL Zone 1, East); £110/m² (CIL Zone 2, Central); £70/m² (CIL Zone 3, West) under its London Borough of Hounslow CIL Charging Schedule, plus the Mayor's scheme at £72.73 per square metre in band 2. A terraced house averages £611,320. We flag any levy in the handover pack.

Related services and neighbouring boroughs

To carry the design into construction detail, see construction drawings in Hounslow, and for permission first start at planning drawings in Hounslow or architectural drawings in Hounslow. If the house needs electrical design as part of the project, see electrical design drawings in Hounslow. Next door, the same service is described for Richmond upon Thames, Ealing and Hammersmith and Fulham.