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Building and Fire Regulations
The purpose of building regulations is to ensure that anyone wishing to design, construct or alter a building does so to a set of national standards.
All loft conversions require full plans to be submitted together with a set of appropriate structural calculations, which will be scrutinised by the local authority building control department and the Engineers section.
All properties have to comply with a rigorous set of fire regulations when building an additional storey. The construction of a loft conversion must be 0.5-hour fire resistant from the rest of the house, which is why a fire-check lobby at the head, or occasionally at the bottom of the stairs, is mandatory.
With the enforcement of a new building law, passed in April 2007 it is now not necessary to provide a means of escape in the loft through a fire escape Velux but to replace or upgrade all existing habitable room doors to fire doors which will be checked for compliance at the final building inspector visit.
The local authority building surveyor will call several times during the course of the work to ensure that all requirements are adhered to. Following final inspection your Local Authority will issue a completion certificate which we recommend you keep safely, along with any other relevant documentation, in readiness for when or if you sell your property.
Do bear in mind that Building & Fire Regulations provide for a minimum standard of compliance only. At SIMPLY LOFTS, we choose to use higher-grade materials at particular stages of our work to ensure that your loft is built and finished to much higher standards than those required merely to meet Building & Fire Regulations.
At SIMPLY LOFTS we incorporate all local authoritiy fees in our initial quote and any communication in relation to the build will be undertaken by our staff, leaving our customer to relax knowing their loft conversion is in safe hands.
If you would like to contact your local council for any further information, please call:
* Please be aware any information given by your local council will be on a no prejudice basis.
Planning Permission
Local Council's are governed by a very definitive set of key rules and legislations which affect the construction, conversion type and outcome of your build. Although it may seem like a lot of meaningless red tape it is vital to secure the correct planning permission before work commences as non compliance may result in an illegal construction and order of reversal.
At SIMPLY LOFTS we have extensive knowledge into the planning process and are happy to inform and assist our customers throughout. We also incorporate submission of all plans and applications to the Council on your behalf to insure compliance and relieve you of any unnecessary confusion and stress.
Official regulations affect the type of conversions available to you, according to the type of house you wish to convert and the area you live in. However a large proportion of properties do not require planning permission for a loft conversion as the majority of properties have permitted development rights.
Planning permission takes between eight to ten weeks for the Council to reach a final decision and issue approval, required amendments or the disapproval of the application. The process of planning permission includes posting the proposed details of the build in the local paper and on the wall outside the property and/or a lamp post and issuing plans and notification to neighbours or surrounding properties.
In the event planning permission is refused, you have the right of appeal to the Department of Environment, although such appeals can be both costly and time consuming. However with the knowledge of an experienced architect and design team a refusal and appeal is easily avoided, our architect has many years experience and has even worked in the planning department at the local Council.
Permitted Development
Permitted development is issued for all properties except flats, those situated in a conservation area and those at a junction to two public highways. Detached and semi detached properties are issued 70 cubic metres development rights and terrace houses 50 cubic metres which allows the construction of these measurements out of the roofline.
The cubic metreage allowance takes into consideration any existing extensions built after 1948, conservatories and garages within 5 metres of the existing property, these constructions will all contribute to the deduction of the allocated allowance which may in turn result in planning permission to obtain the required conversion.
Permitted development rights allow homeowners to benefit from the widest range of design options.
If you would like to contact your local council for any further information, please call for a free information pack.
* Please be aware any information given by your local Council will be on a no prejudice basis.
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