Independent drawing review in London

What the review covers

We start with consistency, because faults often hide there. Does the floor plan agree with the elevation? Are dimensions the same on every sheet? Do window schedules match what is drawn? Does the section show the structure the plan implies?

Next comes compliance. For a planning set that means validation: the national guidance sets a basic test (Drawn to an identified scale; plans show north), and councils can only ask for documents that are proportionate (the rule: Local validation requirements must be proportionate and backed by a development plan policy). We read the set against both. For permitted development schemes we check that the drawings reflect the current Order, bearing in mind this note: Householder PD technical guidance dates from Sep 2019; check drawings against the current Order.

Finally the specification, if there is one. We look for products named without performance, items missing between drawing and schedule and notes that contradict each other. The result is a list ranked by consequence, so you fix the expensive items first.

Why independence has legal weight now

Since the Building Safety Act, design work carries personal duties. The competence rule is blunt (Designers must have the skills, knowledge, experience and behaviours to do the work) and is set out in regulation 11F of the Building Regulations 2010. This binds the person who designs, not just the person who builds.

The consequences are also stated in law: Contravening building regulations: on indictment up to 2 years' imprisonment or a fine (or both). That is the penalty for contravening the regulations, and it is the reason a review before construction is cheap compared with a notice afterwards.

If you are acting as client on a larger job, our principal designer service covers the coordinating role the duties require. A drawing review is a smaller step, and a sensible first one.

Rules that are changing, and what they mean for older drawings

Technical guidance moves, and a set drawn a year ago may already be out of date. Fire safety is the current example: AD B 2026 amendments (second staircase at 18 m+, evacuation lifts) apply from 30 Sep 2026. Anything that relies on the earlier text should be tested against the new one before the work begins.

Energy is next. The dates are published: AD L and AD F 2026 take effect 24 Mar 2027. Projects that start on site after that point may be assessed under the newer standards, so a detail drawn to the older U-value table can need revisiting. We flag these transitions in the report with the date that matters and leave you to decide how far to anticipate them.

Our building regulations drawings service can then revise the affected sheets if you wish.

What a review costs and what you receive

A review starts from £300, VAT included. The price rises with the number of sheets and the complexity of the project, and we confirm a fixed figure once we have seen the set.

You receive a written report with numbered findings, each tied to a sheet and a reason, with a severity from must-fix to advisory. We highlight anything that would make an application invalid, anything a builder would query and anything that conflicts with a regulation. A short call follows to walk you through it.

We report on what we are shown. If a drawing refers to a structural design or a survey that we have not been given, we say so rather than assume it exists.

From upload to report

Send the drawings and any specification as PDFs, along with the address and what stage the project is at. We confirm scope and price before starting.

A chartered technologist reads every sheet, and a second reads the report before it reaches you. That is the same checker-is-never-the-drafter rule we apply to our own sets. If the review leads to changes, our planning drawings team can make them, though there is no obligation.

Drawing review by borough

Councils read the same national rules differently, and what a validation officer expects in one borough can be left out in another. Our council pages explain the local designations and decision patterns that sit behind a drawing set. Look at architectural drawings in Camden for an example, or see all places under architectural drawings by area.