Only Extensions 0808 189 1064 info@onlyextensions.com

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THE ONLY EXTENSIONS GUIDE Introduction !This guide is intended to take you through each step of getting your extension designed, approved and built. It is organised to follow the usual sequence of events for a typical Only Extensions project and should be referred to throughout the process. The sections are:!!• The Initial Consultation • Survey & Sketch Design • Planning Applications • Detailed Design & Building Regulations • Other Applications & Approvals • Tender & Builder Appointment !In each section the colour-coded blocks will give you an indication of...

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!Only Design Ltd T/A Only Extensions

Company Number: 07776513 Registered Office address:

12a Marlborough Place, Brighton, BN1 1WN� of �1 8

Anticipated costs for each stage

How long each activity should take

What outcome you can expect

When you can get estimates & quotes

Only Extensions 0808 189 1064 info@onlyextensions.com

!!!!!The Initial Consultation !• Discuss your aims & requirements • Assess which planning rules apply • Advise on applications required • Discuss the general process and timescales

!Only Design Ltd T/A Only Extensions

Company Number: 07776513 Registered Office address:

12a Marlborough Place, Brighton, BN1 1WN� of �2 8

TIMESCALE: Appointment within 2 weeks of your enquiry. Fee Proposal issued

within a 3 days.

OUTCOME: If you are happy to go ahead please confirm and we will arrange to come and survey the

property.

In most circumstances we will arrange to come and carry-out a free initial site consultation to discuss your ideas and confirm what we think can be done. Our assessment will take into account factors such as:• Site- slopes, orientation, relationship to boundaries and

neighbouring properties (particularly with a view to potential for loss of light and/or privacy), outbuildings on site.

• Planning- can the proposal be designed to work within permitted development rights or will it require planning permission?

• Other possible approvals- party wall notices/awards, build over licences (for shared drains)

• Services- positions of existing services and how these may effect proposals. This could include manholes, soil & rainwater pipes, extract flues, electrical or gas supplies, fuse boards and boilers.

• Structure- existing layouts, load-bearing walls, elements of structure above which may require support.

• Architecture- type/style of the building to be extended & the wider context and how this could effect the design.!

In considering all these factors we also need to have a clear idea of what you are hoping to achieve so it would be useful if you could consider the following prior to the meeting:• What are you hoping to achieve in terms of rooms,

spaces and function of the enlarged space?• Where do you want to extend ideally and do you have

specific dimensions in mind?• Are there any particular features internally or externally

that you want to accommodate?• What style, materials, look or feel are you hoping to

achieve? Example images are very helpful of anything that inspires you.

COSTS: The initial consultation is

free of charge. After this meeting we will confirm all fees to take the project forwards.

Only Extensions 0808 189 1064 info@onlyextensions.com

!!!!!Survey & Sketch Design !• Measure-up the property & confirm brief • Draw-up the existing plans, sections & elevations • Prepare sketch designs based on our discussions • Receive your comments & make final amendments

!Only Design Ltd T/A Only Extensions

Company Number: 07776513 Registered Office address:

12a Marlborough Place, Brighton, BN1 1WN� of �3 8

Before any designs can be prepared we need to first of all survey the property in order to prepare existing plans, section and a 3-D model of the external envelope. The survey is undertaken using a tape and hand-held laser measure so whilst every effort is made to be as precise as possible, we cannot guarantee 100% accuracy. Where accuracy is essential we can get quotes for a professional measured building survey by a specialist company but this will cost considerably more. At the same time as carrying out the survey we usually also take the opportunity to run through your proposal in order to confirm a detailed brief. The whole exercise usually takes a couple of hours depending on the size or type of the building and ideally needs to be done in daylight hours.!When the existing drawings have been completed we will begin work on the sketch designs using the detailed brief developed from our discussions. In most cases the sketch design package will comprise overall plans, sections and elevations at 1:100 plus 3-D sketch views to help illustrate the external envelope. Once completed these will be emailed to you for feedback and we will make further revisions as required. This process is usually done by email and our standard fee would not normally allow for further design meetings unless specifically requested. !Once you have confirmed you are happy with the sketch designs we will advise you of the next step. We can also get an initial estimate this stage from one of the builders we regularly work with.

COSTS: Design Fees for this

stage - invoiced when the sketch designs are

issued.

TIMESCALE: Survey within 2 weeks of

being appointed. Sketch designs issued

within 1 week.

OUTCOME: An agreed concept to enable full designs to

be developed. !INITIAL BUILDERS ESTIMATE

Only Extensions 0808 189 1064 info@onlyextensions.com

!!!!!The Planning Stage !• Submit for pre-application advice if applicable • Finalise drawings and complete forms • Submit the application and deal with any queries • Receive decision and advise on next steps

!Only Design Ltd T/A Only Extensions

Company Number: 07776513 Registered Office address:

12a Marlborough Place, Brighton, BN1 1WN� of �4 8

COSTS: Design fees- invoiced

when the application is submitted +

Cost of OS map & Application fee.

TIMESCALE: Pre-app advice takes

about 2 - 4 weeks. Planning or certificates

submitted within a week. The Council take 8 weeks

to be consider applications.

OUTCOME: A Certificate of Lawfulness or

Planning Approval or Advice on your options.

Once the concept has been agreed and initial sketches signed-off, we will complete the final drawings and any other supporting documents required in order to submit the application(s) on your behalf. For most projects this will entail submitting a Certificate of Lawfulness Application in order to confirm that the proposals meet the permitted development (PD) criteria. !Where the proposals are not within PD, we will need to submit a householder application. Before committing to this, you have the option of seeking pre-application advice, which will give you initial, informal feedback from the planners and is a useful way of establishing whether your scheme is likely to be approved. This advice can be sought using the initial designs and in some cases we may advise submitting with very basic outline sketches prior to the survey and sketch design phase. The precise process and cost varies between authorities but generally takes 2 - 4 weeks to be dealt with.!Once checked and registered, details of your certificate or householder application are put in the council's planning application register where you can follow progress. The application takes up to 8 weeks to be considered and during this period the planning officer will probably arrange to carry out a site inspection. If the application is to be refused for any reason the officer normally notifies us and we would then contact you to discuss your options. The majority of applications go straight through to approval though and we will be sent the decision notice which is scanned and emailed to you with details of the next steps.

Only Extensions 0808 189 1064 info@onlyextensions.com

!!!!!Detailed Design & Building Regulations !• Add further detailed information to drawings • Prepare specification & technical notes • Liaise with engineer & incorporate details • Complete forms and submit application

!Only Design Ltd T/A Only Extensions

Company Number: 07776513 Registered Office address:

12a Marlborough Place, Brighton, BN1 1WN� of �5 8

COSTS: Design fees

Structural Engineers fees SAP Calculation (if

required) Application fee

In all cases a building regulations application needs to be submitted to confirm technical compliance. This is usually done after the planning stage but where your extension is within PD you may decide to submit the applications at the same time to speed-up the process.!The first step is usually to commission structural calculations and we will send the planning drawings to our engineers in order to get confirmation of their fees- you then need to appoint them. If you want to use your own engineers this is fine- just let us have their details and we will email them the drawings. !Once the calculations are received from the engineers we can complete our detailed notes and drawings- incorporating the structural design information. We will then prepare the application form, get confirmation of the fee and when you have approved everything submit the application. We normally apply to 'Assent Building Control Ltd' (rather than the local authority) which has the advantage that we always get the same inspectors and have a strong working relationship as a result. As such the checking process is generally much quicker and work can start within 1 week of submission if needed.!Once the application is received by Assent they will serve a notice to the local authority- a copy of this will be sent to you with their invoice which needs paying. This pack will also have details of the procedure for inspections which should be given to your builder when appointed.

TIMESCALE: Structural calculations

usually 2 - 3 weeks. Application submitted 1

week later. Work can start 1 week

after applying.

OUTCOME: Drawings & notes which are normally sufficient to get prices and build

from.

FULL BUILDERS QUOTE

Only Extensions 0808 189 1064 info@onlyextensions.com

!!!!!Other Applications & Approvals !• Advise on other approvals required • Suggest specialists & seek quotes • Liaise with specialists & incorporate into received • Submit applications where appropriate

!Only Design Ltd T/A Only Extensions

Company Number: 07776513 Registered Office address:

12a Marlborough Place, Brighton, BN1 1WN� of �6 8

COSTS (POSSIBLE): Build-over licence fee.

Party Wall costs. Further design fees.

Other consultants costs.

In some cases further approvals may be required and we would aim to advise you of these at the initial consultation and in our subsequent fee proposal. The most common examples of these are:!Build-over licence which needs to be submitted to the local sewage authority where you are building over or within 3m of a shared waste pipe. This involves preparing an additional detailed section to show the waste in relation to foundations, slabs etc. We would then submit this along with the appropriate form (& fee) and deal with any subsequent queries received from the authority. !Party Wall Notices which must be issued to your neighbours where you are either undertaking work on a shared element of structure (eg wall or separating floor), building up to the boundary, or building near the boundary and below the level of existing foundations. In these cases you need to submit a notice to your neighbours and we can supply template letters in Word format which you can amend and issue as required. Where the neighbour does not agree to the work you may need to get Party Wall Awards prepared by Party Wall Surveyors who you will have to pay.!Both the build-over and party wall approvals need detailed drawings so these cannot be dealt with until the building regulations stage and can sometimes delay the start of works. In some cases you may also need to employ other consultants to prepare specialist documents such as tree surveys, arboricultural reports, acoustic tests, SAP calculations, asbestos surveys and rights of light surveys. We do not deal with any of these areas ourselves but work with many specialists and can usually source quotes for you.

TIMESCALE: Build-over = 4-6 weeks Party Wall Awards = up

to 3 months for complex jobs.

OUTCOME: All approvals dealt with

to enable you to confirm final costs &

appoint a builder.

Only Extensions 0808 189 1064 info@onlyextensions.com

!!!!!Tender & Builder Appointment !• Prepare detailed schedules for pricing • Deal with the tender process • Draft a Contract for appointment of builder • Assist with Contract Administration

!Only Design Ltd T/A Only Extensions

Company Number: 07776513 Registered Office address:

12a Marlborough Place, Brighton, BN1 1WN� of �7 8

COSTS: Fees for preparing documentation &

meetings/site visits. Payments to builder.

For most projects our involvement ends at the building regulations stage where you will have sufficiently detailed drawings & notes for the builders to price and work from. However this still leave some aspects of the building unspecified and you will need to put in a certain amount of work yourself in order to clarify and confirm all details fully. If you would prefer us to do everything though, we can prepare further detailed drawings & schedules to enable an itemised pricing. These would include:• Full schedule listing all works to be done. • Specifications for materials, fittings and finishes.• Electrical & lighting layouts• Detailed drawings for fitted furniture, bathrooms, tile

setting-out etc.!Having prepared this information we can then manage the tender process for you, sending out all documentation required for your selected to builders to price against. We will then receive their quotes back, prepare a report and make our recommendations. Once you've decided on your preferred builder we can confirm details, draft a building contract and assist with their appointment. !During the construction phase we can also make regular site visits to check works are progressing in accordance with the specifications and agreed programme. We can then deal with contract administration- certifying payments and managing any changes to the agreed Contract sum. On completion we can prepare a snagging list to ensure everything is completed to our satisfaction.

TIMESCALE: Prepare documents

= 2 weeks. Tender period = 3 weeks.

Pre-start preparation = 3 weeks minimum.

Contract period = 6 - 12 weeks on average.

OUTCOME: Itemised prices to

select builder. Formal Contract for builder appointment. Managed Contract to

keep on budget & schedule. DETAILED TENDER RETURNS

Only Extensions 0808 189 1064 info@onlyextensions.com

!!!!!!!!!!

!Only Design Ltd T/A Only Extensions

Company Number: 07776513 Registered Office address:

12a Marlborough Place, Brighton, BN1 1WN� of �8 8