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Barking and Dagenham, London

Side return extension drawings in Barking and Dagenham

Side return extension drawings for a Barking and Dagenham house start at £745 including VAT. Filling the strip beside your kitchen is the classic way to gain a family room here, and the borough's own guidance, the Residential Extensions and Alterations SPD, sets the frame for how it is drawn. Houses on the Becontree Estate also answer to a separate design code.

From £745 (VAT included)

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  • Fixed fees, VAT included

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    Architectural model of a four-storey London stucco townhouse in its terrace, with a portico, area railings, sash windows, a cornice and chimney stacks
    The house as it stands: four storeys over a lower ground floor.Existing Proposed worksAn illustrative model, built for this page.

    How we work on side return extension drawings

    Nine steps from first call to approval.

    The same model cut through the middle: every floor, the stair, the chimney breasts, the new mansard, rear extension and basement in section
    Section through the model: every floor on one datum.

    1. 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.

    2. 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.

    3. 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.

    4. Design frozen

      You choose an option in writing. Nothing changes after this without your say.

    5. 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.

    6. Submission

      We prepare the forms, certificates, fee and documents and submit through the Planning Portal.

    7. Officer liaison

      We answer the planning officer and make any amendments within five working days, at no charge until approval.

    8. Building regulations

      Technical drawings are coordinated with the structural engineer's calculations, the drainage and the planning conditions.

    9. Approval and hand-over

      Building control approval, then a next-steps pack covering the commencement notice, party wall timing and CIL.

    Free redraws until approval. Every drawing set is checked independently, and the checker is never the person who drew it.

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    Finished white-rendered rear house extension with large glazed doors

    Side return extension drawings in Barking and Dagenham and the Becontree code

    Two borough documents matter before a line is drawn. The first is the Residential Extensions and Alterations SPD, which covers ordinary house alterations across the borough. The second is the Becontree Estate SPD and Design Code, written for the planned Becontree Estate. Both sit beneath the Barking and Dagenham 2037 Local Plan, adopted in 2,024.

    The estate document is the one that changes a side return design. Estate houses were laid out as a consistent run, so a new flank wall, a taller eave or a different brick is read against its neighbours as well as against the street. We study the design code first and draw the roof edge and materials to suit it, rather than discover the conflict after submission.

    The council publishes no single numeric limit for side returns that we can quote, so we work from the guidance text and from the permitted development limits below. If a neighbour's earlier extension already sits on the boundary, we use it as the reference for height and depth in the drawings.

    Two-storey rear extension under construction on a semi-detached house

    Local figures for Barking and Dagenham

    Figures with their unit, period and source
    MeasureValuePeriodSource
    Householder decisions388 decisions1 July 2025 - 30 June 2026assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
    Householder applications granted66.5 %1 July 2025 - 30 June 2026assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
    Householder applications decided in time100 % decided within 8 weeks or an agreed extended period1 July 2025 - 30 June 2026assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
    Conservation areas4 named conservation areas published by the council—planning.data.gov.uk
    Article 4 directions3 Article 4 directions published by the council—planning.data.gov.uk
    Larger home extension prior approvals refused36 decisions2025 Q2 to 2026 Q1 (1 Apr 2025 to 31 Mar 2026)assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
    Households living in a house68.8 % of households living in a house or bungalow (detached, semi-detached or terraced)Census 2021nomisweb.co.uk
    Average price, terraced409,511 GBP2026-07publicdata.landregistry.gov.uk
    Class A, para A.1(j)Side extension: single storey, max 4 m high, max half the width of the original house—legislation.gov.uk
    Class A, para A.1(i)Eaves no higher than 3 m where within 2 m of the curtilage boundary—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.

    Councils bordering Barking and Dagenham

    Householder applications by street in Barking and Dagenham

    Streets in Barking and Dagenham with the most householder applications, and the share approved
    StreetApplicationsApproved
    Westrow Drive5162%
    Upney Lane3579%
    Beccles Drive3467%
    Lyndhurst Gardens2862%
    Blake Avenue2270%
    Western Avenue2250%
    Salisbury Avenue2174%
    Lichfield Road1956%
    Melford Avenue1975%
    Rugby Road1958%
    East Road1861%
    Fanshawe Crescent1871%
    Marston Avenue1872%
    Sandringham Road1871%
    Woodbridge Road1869%
    Counts of householder applications by street; no individual applications are shown. Streets with fewer than five applications are left out.Source: GLA Planning London Datahub, householder applications, all years held. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.
    The 45-degree test in planTest used in daylight assessments: 45 degrees (plan and elevation). Barking and Dagenham guidance: 3.65 mAB

    The 45-degree test in plan

    A line from the middle of the neighbour's nearest window: the extension should stay behind it.

    A · Test used in daylight assessments
    45 degrees (plan and elevation)
    B · Barking and Dagenham guidance
    3.65 m

    Barking and Dagenham figures that shape a side return

    Barking and Dagenham decided 388 householder applications in its latest reporting year and granted 66.5 per cent of them. Every one was decided in time, with 100 per cent inside the target period. Fast decisions combined with a real refusal share reward a drawing set that answers the officer's questions before they are asked.

    The borough has 4 conservation areas and 3 Article 4 directions, so check whether your street falls inside one before you assume a permitted route. On the larger-extension prior approval route, 10 were granted against 36 refused, which shows how narrow that shortcut is in practice.

    68.8 per cent of households live in a house or bungalow, and 42.4 per cent own their home. A terraced house averages £409,511, and domestic gardens make up 22.8 per cent of the borough's land, so a side return that keeps the garden usable often serves a family better than a deep rear extension.

    Permitted development and building regulations for a side return

    The national limit for a side extension under permitted development reads: Side extension: single storey, max 4 m high, max half the width of the original house. Near a boundary: Eaves no higher than 3 m where within 2 m of the curtilage boundary. Materials must also match: Exterior materials must be of similar appearance to the existing house (conservatories excepted).

    Where the house stands on protected land the route changes completely, because No side extensions under PD on article 2(3) land (conservation areas etc.). A lawful development certificate can confirm a permitted scheme, and our lawful development certificate in Barking and Dagenham page explains how that works locally.

    Building regulations apply either way. Glazing is limited: Windows, roof windows, rooflights and doors in an extension should not exceed 25% of the extension floor area plus the area of openings removed or covered. A side return with a glass roof and a glass wall tests that limit quickly, so the thermal approach is fixed early. Limiting values for new elements are: 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.

    What the drawing set contains and what it costs

    Our side return set shows the existing and proposed floor plans, the roof plan, the elevations facing the boundary and the garden, a section through the new kitchen and a block plan marking the strip. The price is £745 with VAT included, quoted before you commit. Council fees come separately; the householder fee is £548.

    We start from a measured survey of the house and the strip, because a side return is decided in centimetres: the width left beside the neighbour's wall, the position of the drain run, the height of the boundary fence and the level change at the back door. Drawings follow about a week after the survey, and every set is checked by someone other than the person who drew it. If the council asks for changes, we redraw at no charge.

    Because a side return normally involves the wall you share, the Party Wall etc. Act matters. Notice for a new wall on the line of junction is: Line-of-junction (new wall) notice at least 1 month before work. Where an existing party structure is affected: Party structure notice at least 2 months before work.

    If you want the rear wall opened as well, our rear extension drawings in Barking and Dagenham cover the combined scheme, and planning drawings in Barking and Dagenham show the full application set. Across the river, side return extension drawings in Bexley follow a different design guide.

    What you receive

    Planning drawing sheet for a rear extension with plans, elevations and sections
    Sample drawing. Planning drawings for a rear extension: plans, elevations and sections on one sheet set.
    House extension under construction with scaffolding, new glazed doors and building materials
    Every side considered
    Flick across the turntable to spin it.

    Other services in Barking and Dagenham

    Side return extension drawings nearby

    Questions

    Which Barking and Dagenham guidance applies to a side return?

    The Residential Extensions and Alterations SPD for general alterations, and the Becontree Estate SPD and Design Code if your house is on the estate.

    Can I build a side return without planning permission in Barking and Dagenham?

    Sometimes. The limit is: Side extension: single storey, max 4 m high, max half the width of the original house. A lawful development certificate confirms it in writing.

    How likely is a householder application to be granted here?

    The council granted 66.5 per cent of 388 householder decisions in its latest year. That is a past figure, not a promise for your scheme.

    What do side return extension drawings cost?

    From £745 including VAT, fixed before you commit.

    Sources and dates

    City of London skyline glowing at dusk across the Thames under a dramatic orange sky

    Tell us about your property.

    We check the constraints, then send a fixed fee. Messages before 3pm get a reply the same working day.

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