Coronavirus/Covid-19: How it affects you and your extension project

Last updated 6th April 2020

In light of the current COVID-19 situation, we would like to assure you that we are following the government's guidance and will adjust our practice as necessary over the coming weeks.

Following the Government’s decision to implement stricter lock down procedures, we have made the difficult decision to postpone all site visits, and offer a remote architectural design service for the time being.

For our current clients, there should be no delay to your projects. For those looking to get advice over the next couple of months about a future project, please bear with us and we’ll take each day as it comes. If you have any questions at all, please call us on 0115 874 8570 or 07743 686654.

The following paragraphs explain how each stage of your project may or may not be affected…

Initial consultation

While we prefer to see clients face to face at this initial stage, we can carry out initial consultations by phone or video call for the next few weeks. We may ask for you to take photos of the site and send them to us, so we can perform feasibility checks and provide an accurate quotation.

Site measure

Unfortunately, we will be unable to carry out site measures until we get a better idea of the situation. We want to continue to put our clients first and will do our utmost to keep your projects moving. We have therefore launched a remote service.

Design

The design of your home extension (or loft conversion, new build, etc.) should not be affected. We do everything remotely and are happy to have as many conversations as our clients need by phone and by email.

Planning

If your project requires planning permission (or submission to the local authority under the prior notification scheme), please be aware that all councils are acting in the interests of protecting their staff and the general public, working remotely and offering a more limited service. As such, there will inevitably be delays across the board.

This should not discourage you from embarking on a project that requires planning permission but please bear in mind that it may take longer than the 8-10 week period it usually does.

We have had no confirmation from ANY council that they are closing their planning department altogether and suspending all planning services.

If you have any queries at all, please feel free to contact us rather than the council. We handle less calls and enquiries per day than they do and we want to do as much as we can to help everyone involved. We should be able to answer your query and if we can’t, we will get an answer for you as soon as we can. If you do need to speak to the council or a specific planning officer, please email them rather than phoning.

Building Control

If you choose to use your local authority for building control, the above will likely apply.

If you choose to use a private company, we are fairly certain that any applications currently being processed will continue as usual. If the restrictions enforced by the government mean site inspectors are unable to visit the property, they will likely be able to undertake a remote inspection of the build - so long as plenty of photographs are taken throughout construction (your builder should do this). The same will apply if any of the household are self-isolating, have tested positive for Coronavirus or have any symptoms - or if anyone within the property is considered elderly or vulnerable

Again, if you have any queries, please feel free to give us, or your build control company/officer a call.

Build

For any queries you have about builders and the build stage of your project, please take a look at this Official guide to social distancing on construction sites published by The Construction Index, which outlines the key points of the recently produced Site Operating Procedures from The Construction Leadership Council.

If you are looking to undertake a project in the next few months and are looking for builders, please give us a call. We work with several builders across the East Midlands and can provide you with information on their availability.

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If you have any questions at all, please do not hesitate to contact our team on hello@practicalplanningco.co.uk or call us on 0115 8748570 / 07743686654.