Planning permission for two-storey extensions in County Londonderry

County Londonderry at a glance

Nation: Northern Ireland
Price region: Northern Ireland
Postcode areas: BT
Towns covered: 11 listed below, plus surrounding villages
Site visits: Free, no obligation

What a planning application involves

This service suits you if you want your two-storey extension to go through planning with the best chance of approval. You get a check of your house's planning history, permitted development rights and local design guidance, a design shaped around them, the application prepared and submitted, and someone to deal with the planning officer's questions. We cannot promise an outcome, but we design to give the application a fair chance.

The main places we list in County Londonderry are Derry (BT48), Coleraine (BT51), Limavady (BT49), Magherafelt (BT45), Portstewart (BT55) and Portrush (BT56). We cover the villages in between too.

Fees

Planning drawings are a guide of £2,000–£3,500, priced in writing before the design stage starts. Planning application for works to a house: £347.

Rules in Northern Ireland

In Northern Ireland, a planning application for works to a house costs £347 per dwelling. Councils aim to decide local applications within an average of 15 weeks, and many take longer, so we build that into your programme. A two-storey rear extension that goes no more than 3 m beyond the original rear wall and stays 7 m from the rear boundary may be permitted development.

Approval in Northern Ireland: Planning application for works to a house: £347. Councils aim to decide local applications within an average of 15 weeks; many take longer.

Building control: Building control approval from the local council under the Building Regulations (Northern Ireland), using the Technical Booklets.

There is no Party Wall Act in Northern Ireland. Shared walls and boundaries are a matter of title and common law, so we agree access and record conditions with neighbours before work starts.

Getting the design right

Check the history first

Planning conditions from when the house was built, earlier extensions and Article 4 directions can all remove permitted development rights. We check the council's records and your house's history before design starts, so the route is clear.

Design to local guidance

Most councils publish guidance on extensions covering set-backs, roof heights, boundary gaps and neighbours' light. Designing to it from the start makes approval more likely and reduces the chance of being asked to make changes during the application.

How we work in County Londonderry

Measure and listen
A visit to County Londonderry to understand how you live in the house now and what the extra rooms need to do, plus a first look at the structure.
Design and approvals
We draw the extension and check it against the rules for Northern Ireland, then apply for planning permission or a certificate of lawfulness, whichever fits.
Price it properly
Once the engineer's calculations are in, we fix the build price in writing, with a clear list of what's included.
On site
One project lead runs the job, keeps you updated and arranges inspections at each stage until completion.

Towns we cover in County Londonderry