PLANNING APPROVAL GRANTED IN BIRMINGHAM CONSERVATION AREA

Mar 16, 2018

A great way to end the week with a successful planning approval for a contemporary house extension in a Birmingham conservation area.

The house is a semi-detached dwelling surrounded by similar properties on the road. It has previously been extended to the rear with both a two storey and single storey extension. The previous extensions were undertaken in a mostly traditional manner but poorly conceived and unsympathetic to the original house design, particularly the two storey extension with facing brickwork poorly suited to the original bricks.

Existing view to the rear of the property showing the poor quality extensions

The proposed alterations include the part demolition of the existing ill designed rear extensions, and replacement with a contemporary rear addition to the ground floor of a high quality architectural design. Whilst not significantly increasing the length of the existing house (the line of the new rear wall is c.1.7m metres further than the current line of the rear of the house) the new layout provides much improved living space for the client in terms of arrangement and usability of rooms. The extension is deliberately modern in its appearance, expressed as a contemporary addition using contrasting and good quality facing brick, carefully designed roofline and glazing.

Proposed ground floor plan

It is also proposed that the first floor flat roof that sits poorly against the original house is replaced with a traditional pitched roof as a continuation of the original house roof. This aspect would be traditionally detailed to match the original roof, for example, using exposed rafters and purlins. The poor facing brick to this two storey extension will be rendered with a roughcast render appropriate to the age of the property. It is also proposed that the remaining windows to the rear and side of the existing house are replaced or redecorated and be painted white.