Camden, London
Dormer loft conversion drawings in Camden
Dormer loft conversion drawings for a Camden house start at £695 including VAT. Camden wants a dormer to look like a small part of the roof, not a second house on top of the first. Its guidance sets the proportions. With 1,971 listed entries in the borough, some roofs also need listed building consent.
From £695 (VAT included)
- MCIAT chartered
- £2m PI insured
- LABC Partnered
- Fixed fees, VAT included
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How Camden's guidance shapes a dormer
Camden's rules for dormers are in section 2.2.1 of the Home Improvements CPG (Camden Planning Guidance). A dormer should be subordinate to the roof slope, keep even distances to the ridge, the eaves and any party parapet, and carry more glass than solid cheek. In a conservation area the guidance asks for more of the original slope to be kept visible around it.
The front is dealt with separately. A front dormer on an unbroken roof slope is unlikely to be supported where the neighbours have none, and the guidance suggests a rear dormer with rooflights at the front instead. For a terrace, that is usually the whole conversation about the street side.
We turn those tests into dimensions on the drawing. The dormer is centred in its bay of roof, the cheeks are kept slim, and the window takes most of the face. That is more work than boxing out the largest permitted volume, and it is the version an officer can support.
Finishes carry the same logic. Where permitted development applies, the exterior materials must be Exterior materials similar in appearance to the existing house, and the side-facing windows must be Upper-floor side windows obscure-glazed and non-opening below 1.7 m above floor. We record the cladding, the glazing bars and the cheek detail on the elevations, because Camden officers read them.
Local figures for Camden
| Measure | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conservation areas | 40 named conservation areas published by the council | — | planning.data.gov.uk |
| Article 4 directions | 21 Article 4 directions published by the council | — | planning.data.gov.uk |
| Listed building entries | 1,971 list entries (Historic England, within the LPA boundary) | — | planning.data.gov.uk |
| Householder decisions | 394 decisions | 1 July 2025 - 30 June 2026 | assets.publishing.service.gov.uk |
| Householder applications granted | 89.1 % | 1 July 2025 - 30 June 2026 | assets.publishing.service.gov.uk |
| Householder applications decided in time | 77.7 % decided within 8 weeks or an agreed extended period | 1 July 2025 - 30 June 2026 | assets.publishing.service.gov.uk |
| Householder appeals decided by the Planning Inspectorate | 76 householder appeals decided | decision dates 1 Jul 2021 to 30 Jun 2026 | assets.publishing.service.gov.uk |
| Householder appeals allowed | 35.5 % of householder appeals allowed | decision dates 1 Jul 2021 to 30 Jun 2026 | assets.publishing.service.gov.uk |
| Supplementary planning document | Home Improvements CPG (Camden Planning Guidance) | 2021 | camden.gov.uk |
| GPDO 2015 Sch 2 Pt 1 Class B, para B.1(d) | 40 m³ (terrace house) / 50 m³ (any other house) additional roof volume | — | legislation.gov.uk |
| Class B, para B.1(c) | No enlargement beyond the plane of a roof slope that forms the principal elevation and fronts a highway | — | legislation.gov.uk |
| Class B, para B.1(f) | Class B roof enlargements are not permitted development on article 2(3) land | — | legislation.gov.uk |
A blank value means the figure has not been published, not that there are none. Check your own address with the council.
Householder applications by street in Camden
| Street | Applications | Approved |
|---|---|---|
| Crediton Hill | 22 | 91% |
| Belsize Lane | 19 | 94% |
| Elliott Square | 17 | 100% |
| Constantine Road | 16 | 100% |
| King Henry's Road | 16 | 91% |
| Camden Mews | 14 | 90% |
| Elsworthy Road | 14 | 77% |
| Solent Road | 14 | 92% |
| Sumatra Road | 14 | 93% |
| Goldhurst Terrace | 13 | 100% |
| Dartmouth Park Road | 12 | 90% |
| Hillfield Road | 12 | 82% |
| Hollycroft Avenue | 12 | 80% |
| Meadowbank | 12 | 82% |
| Patshull Road | 12 | 100% |
Loft enlargement in section: the permitted development limits
A dormer on the rear slope, with the limits that decide whether it needs planning permission.
- A · Extra roof volume allowed
- 40 m³ (terrace house) / 50 m³ (any other house) additional roof volume
- B · Set-back from the eaves
- Original eaves maintained; enlargement set at least 0.2 m from the eaves measured up the roof slope, so far as practicable (not required for hip-to-gable or roofs joining a rear/side extension)
- C · Height limit
- No part higher than the highest part of the existing roof
- D · Headroom Camden expects from the stair
- 2 m
Conservation areas, Article 4 and listed roofs in Camden
Camden has 40 conservation areas and 21 Article 4 directions. Inside a conservation area the national right to enlarge a roof does not apply, so a dormer is a planning application there however modest it is.
Historic England lists 1,971 entries within the borough. A listed house needs listed building consent for a dormer, with its own drawings and a heritage case that the planning set does not need.
Where none of those apply, the permitted development volume is 40 m³ (terrace house) / 50 m³ (any other house) additional roof volume, and the dormer stays off any slope facing the road. We check the address against all of these before we quote.
Camden householder decisions and appeals
Camden decided 394 householder applications in its latest published year and granted 89.1 per cent. Only 77.7 per cent were decided within the statutory period or an agreed extension, so a planning route needs a realistic allowance for time.
On appeal, the Planning Inspectorate decided 76 householder cases from the borough and allowed 35.5 per cent. The count is small, so we read it as context only.
None of this predicts how your own dormer will be received. The timing is the useful part: if you have a builder booked, we start the planning route early.
What a Camden dormer loft conversion drawing set contains
The set shows the existing and proposed plans, the new stair, the dormer in section and every elevation, with the location and block plans. Camden's guidance cares about proportion and glazing, so the elevations are drawn at a scale that shows the window sizes and the roof margins.
The stair is drawn to the loft rule in the building regulations: Loft conversions where 2.0 m cannot be achieved: 1.9 m at the centre of the stair, 1.8 m at the side (half width). A terrace stair is often what fixes the position of the dormer, so we test it on the survey. The fire rule for the new storey is New storey above 4.5 m by loft conversion: protect the full escape route with fire-resisting doors (min E 20) and partitions (min REI 30), and it appears on the plan. The flat roof over the dormer has its own energy target: New elements in existing dwellings, limiting U-values W/(m²·K): roof 0.15, wall 0.18, floor 0.18, windows 1.4 (or WER Band B), doors 1.4.
The price is £695 including VAT, fixed before you commit. A second MCIAT chartered architectural technologist checks the set, and we redraw at no charge if the council asks for changes.
Dormer drawings in Camden and the boroughs beside it
The headroom test for a loft in general is on the loft conversion drawings in Camden page. If the roof is wide enough for an L-shaped form, see L-shaped dormer drawings in Camden, and for a rear addition at the same time, rear extension drawings in Camden.
Compare the rules next door in dormer loft conversion drawings in Islington, in Westminster and in Barnet. The borough overview is architectural drawings in Camden, and the national rules are on the dormer loft conversion drawings hub.
What you receive
Related pages
Other services in Camden
Dormer loft conversion drawings nearby
Questions
Will Camden allow a dormer on the front of my house?
It is unlikely where the neighbouring houses have no front dormers. Camden's guidance suggests a rear dormer with rooflights at the front instead.
What does Camden expect a dormer to look like?
Subordinate to the roof slope, evenly spaced from the ridge, eaves and parapet walls, and with more glazing than solid cheek. In a conservation area it should leave more of the slope visible.
Do I need listed building consent for a dormer in Camden?
If the house is listed, yes, in addition to any planning permission. Camden has 1,971 listed entries, so it is worth checking the address first.
What do dormer loft conversion drawings cost in Camden?
From £695 including VAT, fixed up front. Council fees are separate.
Sources and dates
- planning.data.gov.uk, retrieved
- planning.data.gov.uk, retrieved
- planning.data.gov.uk, retrieved
- assets.publishing.service.gov.uk, retrieved
- assets.publishing.service.gov.uk, retrieved
- camden.gov.uk, retrieved
- legislation.gov.uk, retrieved
- gov.uk, retrieved
- gov.uk, retrieved
- gov.uk, retrieved
- camden.gov.uk, retrieved
- Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.
- Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Contains Historic England data © Historic England 2026. Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.
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