Planning resources
Focused answers to the questions homeowners ask before appointing a contractor: typical costs, what a quote should include, how planning affects a project and which evidence to request. Prices exclude VAT and professional fees, and links point to the relevant service, area and completed-project pages.
Get a rough idea of the build cost for a typical kitchen / side return extension or a typical rear dormer loft with an en-suite.
Typical build price (ex VAT)
£90,000–£100,000
Typical build
10–12 weeks
Build price to a fitted shell: kitchen units, flooring and other second-fix items are supplied by you.
Guide only, for a typical specification. Typical project build prices, excluding VAT and professional fees (design, structural engineer, Building Control, party wall and planning fees). Prices are the same across every borough we cover; access and logistics (parking, skips, scaffold, restricted access) can affect the final price. Your fixed quote follows a site visit.
Get a fixed quote after a free site visit.
Strengthened articles
Reviewed October 2026
A practical UK checklist for checking a builder's history, references, live projects, programme, communication, contract and insurance before you appoint them.
Dormer, L-shaped, hip-to-gable or mansard? Which loft suits Wimbledon and Wandsworth houses, the Class B PD limits and what each council expects.
Which extension suits a Richmond terrace, semi or detached house? Side return, rear, wraparound and two-storey ideas, the design rules that shape them and what drives cost.
Before renovating a Fulham terrace or flat: ownership and licence to alter, conservation areas and Article 4, surveys, building regs and questions for builders.
Planning a side return or wraparound in Clapham? Lambeth or Wandsworth, permitted development limits, conservation areas, Party Wall Act notices and drains.
Extending or converting a loft in Wimbledon? Merton's PD rules, John Innes Article 4 areas, the CIL form to file before you start, and the new portal.
Wandsworth's 8 Article 4 conservation areas explained: which roof, window and front changes need planning, and how to check your street first.
Article 4 and conservation areas in Richmond, Barnes, Sheen and Twickenham: what needs permission, how to check your house, and the extension route.
When to serve party wall notices for a loft or extension, what each notice period means, and a week-by-week timeline from drawings to start.
How lawful development certificates for lofts work, how often SW London councils refuse them, and the PD rules that trip applications up.
Bluebird's typical rear dormer loft price, how rooflight, L-shaped and mansard conversions differ, what changes the price and what an itemised quote should show. Prices exclude VAT and professional fees.
A practical extension cost guide: Bluebird's typical kitchen / side return price (ex VAT and professional fees), what changes it, and the questions that make contractor quotes comparable.
Read the guideFree consultation. Clear, itemised quote. No deposit upfront.
