Why should I use a ‘planning specialist’?

Using Planning Specialist

Many homeowners are confused about whether they need plans or if they should engage the services of a planning specialist for their build projects. Homeowners also painstakingly believe that if their build project falls within permitted development they do not need plans or a planning specialist.

The reality of course is that whilst you may not need planning permission for your project you will most certainly need plans for building regulations approval. All extension or refurbishment projects must conform to the current building regulations and detailed plans, sometimes referred to as technical drawings or building regulation drawings, must be provided to the local building control office when you submit the building notice.

Up until a few years ago it was possible to draw the plan yourself as long as you knew how to draw plans to scale and had a fair idea of the terminology. However, over the past decade or so traditional building and construction methods have evolved dramatically which means that anyone putting technical drawings together will need to have a sound knowledge of the UK building industry and be able to make sound arguments with regard to energy saving should you build incorporate any excessive use of glass.

An Architecture Can Save You Money

Believe it or not there are many occasions when a planning specialist will actually save you money rather than adding 10% or so to your build costs. I know that initially you will be looking to avoid using an architecture so that you can save on the fees but if you think it through you will no doubt agree that the planning specialist will know far more about the build process than you do and will be far more capable at cutting down the costs if the budget is stretched.

For example, if you were building an extension how would you knock 30% or so off the cost of the walls? What about the roof? Do you think you know how to save another 30%? Fact is, there are numerous methods of doing the same thing that can seriously reflect on the costs without improving the finished build. Only an architecture or property professional will know how to keep the costs down and deliver value for money providing he is instructed to do so.

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