What Are Groundworks? Stages, Costs and Timescales Explained
Everything that happens in and on the ground before your extension or new build goes up, in the order it happens, and what drives the cost.
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Building & Groundworks Advice
Straight answers to the questions homeowners ask us most, from planning permission and party walls to foundations, driveways and swimming pools. Written by the team that builds them.
Do I Need Planning Permission for an Extension?
The permitted development limits for rear, side and two-storey extensions, the larger extension route, and the places where stricter rules apply.
Read the answerDo I Need Planning Permission for a Driveway?
The 5m² rule for front gardens, which surfaces avoid planning permission altogether, and why the dropped kerb is a separate application.
Read the answerHow Deep Do Extension Foundations Need to Be?
Why there's no single answer, and how clay, trees, drains and your neighbour's foundations decide how deep you dig.
Read the answerDo I Need a Party Wall Agreement for My Extension?
Which works need a party wall notice, how much notice to give, and what happens if your neighbour doesn't agree.
Read the answerDo I Need Planning Permission for a Garden Room or Outbuilding?
The height, position and size limits for garden rooms, offices and other outbuildings, and where stricter rules apply.
Read the answerExtending a Home in the Cotswolds or a Conservation Area: What's Different?
How permitted development rights shrink on 'Article 2(3) land', including the Cotswolds National Landscape and conservation areas, and how to plan around it.
Read the answerDo I Need Planning Permission for a Swimming Pool?
When a garden or indoor pool counts as permitted development, the building regulations for pool halls, and what to plan for before you dig.
Read the answer12 Questions to Ask a Builder Before You Hire Them
The questions that separate a builder you can trust from one you'll regret, and what good answers sound like.
Read the answerHave A Question We Haven't Answered?
Call us or send a few details and we will give you a straight answer, and a quote if you need one.