Rear extension drawings in Lambeth

The rear return and the Lambeth terrace

Before drawing we record the return exactly: its width, its height against the main roof, the window positions on both flanks and the way it meets the boundary. Where a house has one, it is the most important feature of the back elevation, and the drawings must show it as it is.

Another option fills the gap beside the return, known as a side return infill. It is a different shape from a full-width enlargement, and we cover it on its own page for the borough. Where an owner wants both, the first drawing is a comparison that shows what each choice does to the elevation.

Domestic gardens make up 26 per cent of the borough's land in the Greater London Authority's land-use data, and trees matter too: Lambeth has 339 tree preservation orders and 226 zones. We plot protected trees on the survey.

Materials and proportions decide whether a rear extension looks subordinate. A lower roof than the return, a recessed glazed junction against the old wall and brick that matches the host are the usual ways to show it. We draw these in the elevation and in a section through the junction, which is where officers look first.

Conservation areas, Article 4 and the permission route

Lambeth has 64 conservation areas, with 12 Article 4 directions mapped over 223 areas. Where a house is inside one, permitted development rights may be removed, and the address decides the route.

The borough lists 953 entries with Historic England, and a listed house needs listed building consent for most work at the back. For a house with its rights intact, a deeper extension can use prior approval: Lambeth granted 13 larger home extension prior approvals and refused 18 in the latest return.

Otherwise a householder application is needed. The council fee is £548, paid to the council.

Lambeth also has flats and converted houses, and permitted development rights do not apply to them. If you own the ground-floor flat of a converted house, the route is planning permission, and the freeholder or the other leaseholders may also need to be told. We check this at the start.

How Lambeth decides householder applications

Lambeth decided 595 householder applications in its latest published year, granted 83.4 per cent and decided 93.4 per cent in time.

The figures cover every kind of householder project and cannot predict the result for a particular rear extension. We use them to set expectations about the timetable.

We usually plan the building regulations drawings and the engineer's input in parallel with the application, which keeps the programme tight once permission is granted.

What the drawings include and what they cost

A Lambeth set includes existing and proposed floor plans, elevations and sections, plus a location plan and block plan, and the rear elevation shows the return clearly. Our fee is £695 including VAT, fixed before you commit. A second chartered technologist checks every sheet, and we redraw free of charge if the council asks for changes.

Start from architectural drawings in Lambeth for the borough picture, or from rear extension drawings for the London guide.

Related drawings and nearby boroughs

Filling beside the return is covered by side return extension drawings in Lambeth, and an L-shaped scheme by wraparound extension drawings in Lambeth. If the roof is next, see loft conversion drawings in Lambeth.

Next door the rules differ in Southwark, Wandsworth and Croydon.