Two-storey extension plans and drawings in Dumfries and Galloway

Dumfries and Galloway at a glance

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

What a set of extension plans involves

Two-storey extension plans involve a measured survey of your house, design options, and a set of scaled drawings showing the existing and proposed floor plans, elevations, a site plan and a location plan. Building warrant drawings with construction details follow as a separate, more technical set.

Dumfries and Galloway towns we list: Dumfries (DG1), Stranraer (DG9), Annan (DG12), Locharbriggs (DG1), Dalbeattie (DG5) and Lockerbie (DG11). Every other address in Dumfries and Galloway is covered as well.

Fees

Planning drawings (survey and design) are a guide of £2,000–£3,500 and building warrant drawings and specification £1,500–£4,000, with your design stage priced in writing before it starts.

Rules in Scotland

In Scotland, the plans support a householder application, costing £371, and later a building warrant application with technical drawings to the Scottish Building Standards Technical Handbooks. Because Class 1B needs 10 m to every boundary, the site plan showing boundary distances is often what decides the route.

Approval in Scotland: Householder planning application: £371. Councils have two months to decide a local planning application.

Building standards: A building warrant from the council's building standards service before work starts, and a completion certificate at the end. Scotland uses its own Technical Handbooks.

There is no Party Wall Act in Scotland. Shared walls and boundaries are governed by title deeds and common law, so we speak to neighbours early and record the condition of shared structures.

Getting the design right

Drawings that can be built

Drawings that ignore steel sizes, floor depths or drain runs often need redesigning once a builder prices them. We coordinate the design with the structural engineer and our build teams, so what is approved is practical to construct.

Start with a measured survey

Accurate drawings depend on accurate measurements of the house, the boundaries and neighbouring windows. We measure inside and out, note levels, drains and trees, and record the original house so permitted development limits can be checked against the right starting point.

How we work in Dumfries and Galloway

Look at the house
We start in Dumfries and Galloway with a free visit: measurements, photos, a look at the loft and drains, and a frank chat about budget.
Get it approved
Once you're happy with the design we submit it to the council for Dumfries and Galloway and deal with any questions from the planning officer.
Structure and building standards
A structural engineer sizes the foundations and steels, and we get a building warrant before work starts.
Build it
The new structure goes up first, then we open into the house, finish inside and get the completion certificate.

Towns we cover in Dumfries and Galloway

Two-storey extension plans and drawings in Dumfries and Galloway: questions

Do the plans include structural calculations?

Not at planning stage. Structural calculations and beam design are prepared by a structural engineer once the design is agreed, and they form part of the building standards package. We coordinate the engineer's work with the drawings so steel sizes and floor depths match.

How long do extension plans take to prepare?

Survey, design and planning drawings usually take 4 to 8 weeks, depending on how many options you want to explore. Technical design, structural calculations and a building warrant take a further 4 to 8 weeks, and this can overlap with the planning decision period.

Do I own the plans once they are drawn?

You receive copies of the drawings to use for your project, including your planning application and a building warrant. Copyright in drawings normally stays with whoever prepares them unless agreed otherwise. Your written design stage price sets out how the drawings can be used.

Neighbouring areas

All extension services in Dumfries and Galloway · About two-storey extension plans and drawings