Extension and planning drawings in Stevenage

What are the homes in Stevenage like?

Stevenage was designated in 1946 as the first of the post-war new towns. It was laid out as a series of neighbourhoods, each with its own shops and school, and the homes were built in large batches. The result is streets where many houses share the same shape, size and garden layout.

Old Town, on the original high street, is different. It has older cottages, Georgian frontages and Victorian terraces, and much of it is protected by conservation area status.

How does that affect the work you can do?

Repeated house types make planning easier to predict, because a neighbour with a similar house may already have extended. They also mean:

• many terraces have narrow plots, so a rear extension needs careful design to keep light to both neighbours
• garages sit beside or behind the houses in many neighbourhoods, and some can be converted
• some roofs are low-pitched, which limits loft conversions
• flat-roofed sections and original construction methods can mean extra structural work

Not every estate suits every project, and a designer can check the particular house.

In some neighbourhoods, homes back onto footpaths or shared green space rather than a road. Check who owns the strip beside your plot before designing right up to the boundary.

Which council is responsible?

Stevenage Borough Council decides planning applications in SG1 and SG2, and its building control service is provided by Hertfordshire Building Control. A few homes on the northern edge, around Great Ashby, are in North Herts Council's area, so check by postcode. Some houses were once council-owned and have since been sold, so look at your title for covenants and conditions.

What about conservation areas and listed buildings?

Old Town has conservation area protection, and some buildings in the town are listed. In a conservation area, side extensions and rear extensions of more than one storey are not permitted development. A listed building also needs listed building consent.

What about leaseholders and tenants?

If you live in a flat or maisonette, permitted development rights for houses do not apply, and your lease will almost certainly restrict structural changes. If your landlord is a council or housing association, ask it before making plans.

What do I send?

Tell us your postcode, the house type and the project. With your consent, your enquiry goes to one architectural designer who covers your postcode and nobody else. If nobody covers you, we tell you and keep your details to ourselves.