Neighbours and checks
Existing drawings verification for London homes
Existing drawings verification checks old or inherited plans of your building against the evidence before anyone designs on top of them. The desk check is £189; a version with a site visit is listed in our fees. A chartered architectural technologist (MCIAT) does the work. It tells you how far the drawings can be trusted; it is not a full survey.
From £189, no VAT to add
- MCIAT chartered
- £2m PI insured
- LABC Partnered
- Fixed fees, no VAT to add
Request a fixed quote
The fixed fee for existing drawings verification
- Fixed fee
- from £189
- Total you pay
- from £189
No VAT to add. The fee is fixed in writing after a free constraints check of your address.
What you get
- Desk check of your existing drawings against the evidence you hold
- Checks for scale, north point, internal consistency and map date
- Findings sorted into agrees, conflicts and could not be checked
- Written report with a recommendation on the next step
- Done by an MCIAT chartered architectural technologist
- A site visit version is listed in our fees
How we work on existing drawings verification
Seven steps from first call to approval.
Enquiry and constraints check
We check the property against conservation areas, listed status, Article 4 directions, tree preservation orders, flood zone and planning history. We choose the right route and send a fixed quote.
Measured survey
We survey the house on one datum: rooms, levels, boundaries, drains, trees and the neighbours' windows that the 45° and 25° tests depend on.
Design options
We model the house in Revit and show you options in 3D and plan, with the planning strategy and the precedents in your street.
Design frozen
You choose an option in writing. Nothing changes after this without your say.
Independent check
A second chartered technologist checks every sheet against the council's validation checklist and the policy. A senior review signs it off before anything is submitted.
Submission
We prepare the forms, certificates, fee and documents and submit through the Planning Portal.
Officer liaison
We answer the planning officer and make any amendments within five working days, at no charge until approval.
Free redraws until approval. Every drawing set is checked independently, and the checker is never the person who drew it.
Request a fixed quoteWhy a drawing you were handed may be wrong
Plans that come with a purchase, from a previous owner or from an old project show the building as someone intended it, or as it was years ago. Walls move, extensions are added and dimensions are copied wrongly. Every later drawing inherits those errors, and they show up as clashes on site.
Checking the base drawing first costs little compared with redesigning after the problem is found.
What the desk check does
We read the drawings against the evidence you hold: photographs, estate agent plans, earlier planning drawings, the council's online records you point us to, and any survey. We look for internal contradictions, such as dimensions that do not add up or a stair that does not fit the floor-to-floor height.
We report which parts agree with the evidence, which conflict, and which have nothing to check them against. No part is declared accurate without evidence.
What a council expects of a plan
Whatever the drawing's history, a plan sent to the council has to meet the basics. The Order says plans "Plans and drawings must be drawn to an identified scale and, in the case of plans, must show the direction of North." Guidance repeats that "Any plans or drawings must be drawn to an identified scale, and in the case of plans, must show the direction of north." Old plans often have a stated scale but no north point, or a scale that no longer matches the print.
Guidance also says that "Additional plans and drawings will in most cases be necessary to describe the proposed development" and that "A location plan should be based on an up-to-date map." We note where an inherited location plan is based on a map that is out of date.
When to add a site visit
A desk check can only compare documents with documents. A version with a site visit adds spot measurements on site, so key dimensions are tested against the building. Its fee is listed in our fees.
If the drawings are too uncertain to repair, or you need dimensions to build from, a measured building survey is the sounder base. Where the only problem is that the plans exist as a scan, CAD conversion rebuilds them as editable drawings.
What you get and what happens next
You get a short written report: what was checked, what agreed, what conflicts, what could not be tested, and our recommendation on the next step. We tell you plainly if we think the drawings should not be used as a base.
Councils can ask for more than the national minimum, and guidance says that "Requests must be reasonable having regard, in particular, to the nature and scale of the proposed development." If you intend to submit, the next step is usually a planning drawings review of the finished set.
The national rules in figures
| Measure | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Development Management Procedure Order 2015, article 7(2): scale and north point | Plans and drawings must be drawn to an identified scale and, in the case of plans, must show the direction of North | — | legislation.gov.uk |
| Planning practice guidance, making an application, paragraph 023: scale and north | Any plans or drawings must be drawn to an identified scale, and in the case of plans, must show the direction of north | — | gov.uk |
| Planning practice guidance, making an application, paragraph 023: additional plans | Additional plans and drawings will in most cases be necessary to describe the proposed development | — | gov.uk |
| Planning practice guidance, making an application, paragraph 024: location plan base | A location plan should be based on an up-to-date map | — | gov.uk |
| Development Management Procedure Order 2015, article 7(1): other plans | Any other plans, drawings and information necessary to describe the development which is the subject of the application | — | legislation.gov.uk |
| Planning practice guidance, making an application, paragraph 040: reasonable requirements | Requests must be reasonable having regard, in particular, to the nature and scale of the proposed development | — | gov.uk |
A blank value means the figure has not been published, not that there are none. Check your own address with the council.
Existing drawings verification: the fee in writing before you commit
From £189, no VAT to add. Send the address and anything you already hold, and we confirm the fixed fee in writing before any work starts.
Request a fixed quoteBuilding regulations, layer by layer
The Approved Documents that shape most house projects, from structure to the application itself.
- A · Part A: structure
- Approved Document A: Structure, 2004 edition incorporating 2004, 2010 and 2013 amendments
- B · Part B: fire safety
- All dwellings: fire detection and alarm system minimum Grade D2 Category LD3 (BS 5839-6), mains-operated smoke alarms to BS EN 14604
- C · Part L: insulation
- 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
- D · Part K: stairs
- 2.0 m clear headroom over stairs
- E · Full plans application
- Building control body must decide a full plans application within 5 weeks, or longer if agreed in writing
What you receive
Questions
Does a desk check prove the drawings are accurate?
No. It shows where they agree with the evidence supplied and where they do not. Only measurement on site can test dimensions.
What should I send?
The drawings, plus any photographs, earlier plans, survey or paperwork about the building. The more evidence, the more we can check.
Can you correct the drawings afterwards?
Yes, as separate drawing work, quoted in writing first. Where the base is unreliable we will say a survey is the better route.
Is it enough to apply to the council with?
It tells you whether the drawings are a safe base. Submitting also needs a complete set that meets your council's list.
Sources and dates
- legislation.gov.uk, retrieved
- gov.uk, retrieved
- gov.uk, retrieved
- gov.uk, retrieved
- gov.uk, retrieved
- gov.uk, retrieved
- legislation.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.
Tell us about your property.
We check the constraints, then send a fixed fee. Messages before 3pm get a reply the same working day.