If your project does not fit within permitted development, a householder planning application is how you get permission. The council assesses the proposal against its Local Plan, the London Plan and national policy, consults your neighbours and decides within 8 weeks of validation. Our job is to give the case officer a set of drawings and statements that make approval the straightforward recommendation.
When do you need a householder planning application?
You need full planning permission when the proposal falls outside the permitted development rules for houses in England. The common triggers in London are:
- A rear extension deeper than 3 m on a terraced or semi-detached house (4 m on a detached house), unless it qualifies for the larger home extension prior approval route at 6 m or 8 m
- Any two-storey rear extension within 7 m of the rear boundary, and most wraparound extensions
- A side extension wider than half the original house, or any extension in front of the principal elevation
- A dormer on a roof slope facing the street, or any roof extension in a conservation area or Article 4 area
- Any external change to a flat or maisonette, which have no householder permitted development rights
If you are unsure, our Permitted Development and LDC service checks this first. Where permitted development does apply, a Lawful Development Certificate is cheaper and quicker.
What’s included
The fixed fee covers the whole planning stage. We survey the house, prepare existing drawings and test a concept against the borough’s design guide before drawing the proposal. The proposed set includes plans, elevations and sections at 1:50 or 1:100, a location plan at 1:1250 and a block plan at 1:500, all to the borough’s validation checklist. We write the planning statement or design and access statement where the council asks for one, and a heritage statement for conservation-area sites in boroughs such as Islington or Camden. We then submit on the Planning Portal and act as your agent, answering officer queries and negotiating minor changes rather than letting the application drift to refusal.
What’s not included
The council’s £528 application fee is paid separately (verify before applying). Building Regulations drawings, structural calculations, party wall notices and specialist reports such as daylight and sunlight assessments are excluded, because they are either not needed for planning or belong to a later stage. We coordinate all of them and can add our Building Regulations drawings package once permission is granted. Appeals are quoted separately if a refusal is issued.
Process and timeline
| Stage | Duration |
|---|---|
| Written fixed-fee quote | Within 24 hours |
| Measured survey | Booked within 1 week |
| Concept and policy check | About 1 week |
| Planning drawings and statements | 2–3 weeks after survey |
| Submission on the Planning Portal | Within 2 working days of sign-off |
| Council decision | 8 weeks from validation |
Neighbour consultation runs for 21 days inside the 8-week period. If the officer suggests a change, we amend the drawings promptly so the decision stays on schedule.
Fees
Magna Studio fees for a householder application are fixed per project and set by the project type, from a single-storey rear or side extension through wraparounds and two-storey extensions to dormer and mansard lofts, excluding VAT. Conservation areas, listed buildings and detached houses carry an uplift. The quote tool turns those factors into an indicative figure for your address, emailed within minutes, and our planning documentation page explains what the fee covers.
Related guides and example projects
Read our guide to householder planning applications in London for the process in detail, and conservation areas in London if your house is in one. For local constraints see our borough pages for Hackney, Islington, Camden and Croydon.
Ready to start? Get an instant estimate and we will confirm the route, fee and timeline in writing within 24 hours.
