Most people only get one professional opinion on their drawings, from the person who drew them. A design review gives you a second, independent one before you submit an application, sign a contract or start work. It is quick and fixed-fee, and it often saves the cost of a refusal, a resubmission or an argument about extras on site.
When is a second opinion on drawings worth having?
The review pays for itself in a handful of common situations:
- Before submitting. You have drawings from an online drafting service or a builder and want to know whether a Hackney or Islington officer will accept them, or whether the scheme quietly exceeds permitted development.
- After a refusal. The council has said no and you want an independent reading of whether the design or the drawings were the problem, and what would change the outcome.
- Before signing a build contract. The drawings are approved but you are not sure they contain enough information to hold the builder to a price.
- After buying with consent. The property came with an approved scheme and you want to know whether it is buildable as drawn and what the Building Regulations stage will need.
What does the review cover?
We look at the drawings the way three different people would. As a planning officer, we check depth, height, eaves, window positions, materials and roof form against permitted development and the borough’s design guidance, and note anything likely to attract an objection or a refusal. As a building control officer, we check that the principles are right: escape routes and fire separation for a loft, structural logic for openings and steels, insulation and ventilation, drainage routes. As a contractor, we look for missing dimensions, unresolved junctions and clashes between plan, section and elevation that would become variations on site.
The report ranks each issue as critical, significant or minor, explains why it matters in plain English, and ends with one recommendation: submit, amend or redraw. A 30-minute call follows so you can ask questions.
What’s included
The fixed fee covers a set of up to 12 drawings at any scale plus supporting documents such as a planning statement, decision notice or officer report. You receive a written report within five working days and a 30-minute call. If you then ask us to amend or redraw the scheme, the review fee is credited against that work, and the review itself becomes the brief for the planning documentation we prepare.
What’s not included
The review is desk-based and does not include a site visit or measured survey, although either can be added for a quoted fee where the drawings raise questions only a visit can answer. We do not produce or check structural calculations, and we do not amend the drawings or submit anything to the council as part of the review. Those services are quoted separately if you decide to proceed with us.
Process and timeline
| Step | What you do | What we do | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Send | Upload PDFs and any planning documents | Confirm scope and fixed fee | Same day |
| Review | Nothing | Planning, regulations and buildability check | Up to 5 working days |
| Report | Read the ranked findings | Send report and book the call | Day 5 |
| Call | Ask questions | Walk through issues and recommendation | 30 minutes |
| Next step | Decide: submit, amend or redraw | Quote for amendments if wanted | Within 24 hours |
Fees
The design review is a single fixed fee that depends on the size of the drawing set, excluding VAT. The exact figure is confirmed before we start, and it is credited in full against our fee if you instruct us to amend or redraw. Sets of more than 12 drawings, or a site visit, are quoted separately.
Related guides and example projects
- Do I need planning permission for a rear extension in London?
- How much do loft conversion drawings cost in London?
- Householder planning applications in London
- Planning documentation if the review leads to a redraw
- Borough pages: Hackney, Islington, Wandsworth and Croydon
Send us your drawings and tell us what is worrying you. We will confirm the fee the same day and return a ranked, plain-English report within five working days. Book your review.
