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I have now retired
but am occasionally available for consultation. |
I have been designing buildings and extensions
to buildings for more than 30 years now, and reckon to have
become quite good at it.
I produce design drawings for planning applications and details
for building regulations consent.
The job can be split into two halves, planning,
and building regs, though they are not un-connected
as the technical aspects will steer the design to ensure ‘buildability’.
I will always arrange an initial meeting ‘on-site’
for ‘no charge’ so that I can assess the project
and you can assess the designer. Planning Consent
The planning system has become more complicated,
despite the recent government’s aim to simplify it,
so it’s probably more difficult to obtain consents than
in the past. I endeavour to use my experience to produce a
design that is likely to be approved. There is always a possibility
that it will be refused, particularly the first time, so I
allow for a ‘second attempt’ which will normally
not incure a planning fee.
It is often beneficial to make a pre-application enquiry to
the Local Authority planning department, though this does
often take about a month to complete.
The planning application will always take a minimum of 8 weeks
with the planning dept.
Some projects will be ‘permitted development’
and therefore will not require planning consent. You used
to be able to get confirmation of this in the form of a letter
from the planning department, but now they require us to make
an application for ‘certificate of lawful development’
for which a fee is payable.
The rules on P.D. have recently been changed, so a careful
study and enquiry must be carried out.
Building Regulations
Nearly all building works will require ‘building
regs’ consent from the local authority Building Control
Department.
The best way to do this is to obtain ‘plans approval’
on a set of detailed plans sections and notes, which can be
used by the builder for estimating and building purposes.
David Algar
Architectural Technician - Building Designs
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Typical comments from clients:
“David has managed to come up with an innovative
design that we just love to live in"
"Hand-crafted drawings appear more readable and seem
to win favour with the planners." |
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