Side extensions in Havering depend on the house. Typical homes here: 1930s semi-detached houses in Hornchurch, Elm Park, Upminster, Harold Wood, Collier Row and Gidea Park; Edwardian and garden-suburb houses on the Gidea Park exhibition estate. Designations to check first: Green Belt; Gidea Park Article 4 direction; Conservation areas. Applications are decided by London Borough of Havering and the Havering Local Plan 2016–2031 (adopted 2021).
The permitted development rules for side extensions
A single-storey side extension is permitted development on a house if it is no wider than half the width of the original house, no higher than 4 m, with eaves no higher than 3 m where it comes within 2 m of a boundary, and finished in materials similar in appearance to the house.
Anything wider than half the original house, any two-storey side extension, and any side extension on a flat needs planning permission. Garage conversions that keep the walls are usually permitted development; extending beyond them is assessed as a side extension.
What changes in Havering
Side extensions are not permitted development in a conservation area at all, so there a planning application is always required.
The local constraints that most often decide the route in Havering are listed below, taken from our Havering area page. Each one is a reason to confirm the address on Havering's constraints map before relying on permitted development.
- Green Belt. Around half of Havering is Green Belt, covering Havering-atte-Bower, Noak Hill, Harold Hill's northern edge, North Ockendon, Cranham's fringes and the Rainham and Wennington marshes. Source
- Gidea Park Article 4 direction. The Gidea Park garden suburb conservation area has a long-standing Article 4 direction removing permitted development for extensions, roof alterations, windows, porches, boundary walls and hard standings. Source
- Conservation areas. Havering's conservation areas include Gidea Park, Havering-atte-Bower, Cranham, Corbets Tey, Rainham Village, North Ockendon, St Andrew's Hornchurch and Langtons. Source
- Thames and river flood risk. Rainham, Wennington, South Hornchurch and the Beam Park area sit in tidal Flood Zone 3 behind the Thames defences, and the Rivers Rom, Ingrebourne and Beam put parts of Romford, Hornchurch, Harold Wood and Elm Park in Flood Zones 2 and 3. Source
- Listed buildings. Rainham Hall, Upminster Tithe Barn and windmill, Langtons and the village cores of Havering-atte-Bower and North Ockendon contain listed buildings. Source
What Havering planning officers look for
Havering officers are, in our experience, pragmatic on suburban householder work but firm on set-backs, the 45-degree test and plot coverage in Emerson Park and Gidea Park. Common refusal reasons are two-storey side extensions flush with the front wall, rear extensions deeper than the neighbour's, front dormers, and outbuildings in the Green Belt. The council offers paid pre-application advice and decisions often run beyond 8 weeks, so allow 10–14 weeks.
Fees and timelines
Havering decides a householder application or a Lawful Development Certificate within 8 weeks of validation. The council fee is £528 for a householder application and £264 for a Lawful Development Certificate (England, from 1 April 2025; verify before applying).
Our own fee is fixed once quoted. The quote tool gives an indicative figure in minutes and a written quote follows within 24 hours.
Primary sources
- The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015, Schedule 2: the permitted development limits quoted above.
- Planning Portal: do you need permission: the national guidance and the application service every council accepts.
- London Borough of Havering: planning: the council's own constraints map, validation checklist and pre-application service.
