kandgmitchell

The planners would not have considered FB access to the same degree as Building Control. Look up Requirement B5 in Approved Document B Volume 1 on line - that sets out the basic Building Regulation requirements.

I have to say that would be my concern as well. Out of the 8 surrounding properties only 1 is two storey, all the others are 1.5 or single storey. Planning is always a game of tactics, you have to push your opponent as far as you think they will go. However I've never found the approach of "ask for far more than you want in the first place" to be very successful, it usually ends up costing more in time and money and can create issues if refusals close off useful directions of design. As an aside we have full height, nearly full width glazing in the second bedroom overlooking the lane. Great views, but that's in as well as out and I've noticed guests tend to leave the curtains closed most of the time.......

If the steel is or supports an element of structure then it needs protection. See para's 5.1 - 5.3 in AD B Part 1. Well in England anyway.

G4 which requires the provision of wc and hand washing facilities only requires that a gravity WC is available and doesn't mention a washbasin. G5 in contrast mentions a sanitary appliance used for personal washing should be available other than through a macerator. I would suggest therefore that "personal washing" goes above and beyond a washbasin and requires a bath or fixed shower. By all means try the argument that the Key Term "sanitary appliance" includes a washbasin and you could carry out personal washing at such a basin during the period a macerator was out of use. Just don't be surprised if BC don't agree

Is there much "structural stuff" in a garage conversion? At worst just dig a new foundation to match the existing so as to fill in the gap. The rest is sensible damp proofing and insulation. Save the SE's fees and put them towards the carpet!

This is about competancy for designing building regulation compliant work rather than CDM. The new Building Safety Act requires those designing work to be competant. This is really to try and prevent another Grenfell situation and to make sure complex buildings are designed by those who understand them. This however is a house. I presume your architect has done the building regulation drawings and got approval? If so then the design work is done and they were the competant designer. Since you have done two self-builds before I would suggest that you are competant to organise the build using competant contractors. At the end of the job your BCO will ask you to sign a form confirming who were the competant persons - the architect was the designer and you were the contractor. Ultimately unless the whole thing collapses around your ears no-one will be interested in any of this after 12 months. Recent experience suggests that unless you are building an 18 storey block of flats, life is going on very much like it was just with more paperwork to sign.

This is what Aproved Document B - Fire Safety says for ground floor flats: Escape from the ground storey 3.15 All habitable rooms (excluding kitchens) should have either of the following. a. An opening directly onto a hall leading to a final exit. b. An emergency escape window or door, as described in paragraph 3.6. Which pretty much covers your proposed layout

Different mortgage providers have different rules so ask your chosen company.

In the GDPO regulations the legislation itself says: (2) Unless the context otherwise requires, any reference in this Order to the height of a building or of plant or machinery is to be construed as a reference to its height when measured from ground level; and for the purposes of this paragraph “ground level” means the level of the surface of the ground immediately adjacent to the building or plant or machinery in question or, where the level of the surface of the ground on which it is situated or is to be situated is not uniform, the level of the highest part of the surface of the ground adjacent to it.

I'd say the principal elevation is the one facing highway B. I'd use the yellow dimension to assess the width of the house for the side extension. No side extension would be PD facing Highway A - it's a highway. Yes prior approval needed for an 8m rear extension and yes the 4m height is to the ridge of a pitched roof. The type of roof is not a problem - it's PD. Be aware the section of roof that runs back from the plan of the extension onto the existing building would be dealt with under Class B because it's an extension to the existing roof. A dormer would be allowable on the rear subject to the total volume of roof extension (some used by the extensions as mentioned) and the other requirements regarding height and position etc. Finally it's not 50% of the house area, it's 50% of the curtilage minus the house area. Your extensions and other buildings (garage etc) should not use up more than 50% of that figure.

Ditto, we used roddable bottle gulleys on the rainwater, lift off the grating, pull out the plastic plug in the side and you can get a rod down the connecting drain, simples!

Ditto. Come up with a (any) design using all your permitted development rights and get them agreed with an application for a certificate of lawful development then negotiate what you actually want. Although of course you may find you can achieve close to what you want using PD anyway.

You have started something on site to keep that approval if it is 3 years old? If the works in the approved application are started then there is no time limit on completing them. I'd be surprised if land banking regulations would apply to only two houses, well one if you had built the other one, but then nothing would surprise me in the planning field these days!

You would be relying on Part 2 Class A surely? - erection, construction, maintenance, improvement, or alteration of a gate, fence, wall, or other means of enclosure. Now back in Paragraph 2 - Interpretation, we have sub- paragraph 2: (2) Unless the context otherwise requires, any reference in this Order to the height of a building or of plant or machinery is to be construed as a reference to its height when measured from ground level; and for the purposes of this paragraph “ground level” means the level of the surface of the ground immediately adjacent to the building or plant or machinery in question or, where the level of the surface of the ground on which it is situated or is to be situated is not uniform, the level of the highest part of the surface of the ground adjacent to it. Now I accept we have a fence here rather than "building" "plant" or "machinery" it would seem to be perverse to deal with a fence differently to a building in terms of height.

Well you'll be ok whilst the first plot is being developed because you could use Part 4 of the Schedule to the Permitted Development Regulations viz: Permitted development A. The provision on land of buildings, moveable structures, works, plant or machinery required temporarily in connection with and for the duration of operations being or to be carried out on, in, under or over that land or on land adjoining that land. Development not permitted A.1 Development is not permitted by Class A if— (a)the operations referred to are mining operations, or (b)planning permission is required for those operations but is not granted or deemed to be granted. Conditions A.2 Development is permitted by Class A subject to the conditions that, when the operations have been carried out— (a)any building, structure, works, plant or machinery permitted by Class A is removed, and (b)any adjoining land on which development permitted by Class A has been carried out is, as soon as reasonably practicable, reinstated to its condition before that development was carried out. However, once work is completed and it is clear you are not proceeding with the second plot it becomes more difficult. The caravan will not be within the first plot's curtilage so you can't use the normal PD for a domestic caravan. You could always reapply for planning to delete the second plot and extend the curtilage to include what was the second plot. Personally I'd hate to lose the potential for another dwelling so perhaps a revised application to formally station a caravan on the second plot so that any future application to erect a house would have a head start as the plot was being used as separate residential accommodation. Planners and locals may not like a permanent caravan though.

Well if you've checked it's PD for planning and BC aren't interested then it's your call - I'd thought the existing slab would do the job for what is in effect a big timber shed. I've got a whole two storey house on 10 inches of concrete (ok plus some steel).

If it were me I'd do it but it's your choice. Remember if challenged you need to be confident that it's built substantially of non-combustible materials

As has been explained in the other thread you have in Building Regulations a detached building has to be less than 15m2 if it is within 1m of the boundary and built of combustible material. At 18m2 you'll need it to be built of substantially non-combustible material to be classed as exempt from the Building Regulations. If not then you'll need to apply for consent. As to the capacity of the slab, it's hard enough when standing on it, looking at it to tell, nigh on impossible in a forum question I'm afraid.

And I'd have to agree - you haven't really got a hall have you - it's an extension of the kitchen/dining room. Just think of a fire starting in the kitchen and you're watching Netflix in the lounge. Without an egress window your only route out is through a smoke filled corridor towards the fire in order to get to the final exit. In a similar way those on the first floor will have the same problem. So, although you say the building work doesn't touch the upstairs physically, it does adversly affect the upstairs if it makes the means of escape worse than it was before and thus it is picked up by the Building Regulations.

The criteria for being exempt is "substantially of non-combustible material". So not entirely of non-combustible, nor of a specific material giving a specific fire resistance over a specific time. Just non-combustible. Metal isn't combustible i.e it doesn't burn, it may melt but it doesn't combust. There is no requirement to build a detached building (over 15m2) out of block or brick if it's within 1m of the boundary - they obviously would comply as well but so would steel sheet. Or do as @DevilDamo says, keep it detached and under 15m2 and build it out of whatever you like.

Somerscales in Keelby, Jordan Got Wood Ltd in Grimsby (got all my sleepers from them) worth checking several places for that amount

I think the OP is concerned that BC will require substantial foundations above and beyond the existing reinforced slab they have. That slab can't be proved because of the boundary retaining wall foundations are not available for inspection. The OP is therefore exploring potential lightweight structures that will not involve the relevant authorities.

Well if it will be detached from the dwelling then you can do this... Small detached buildings 1. A detached single storey building, having a floor area which does not exceed 30m2, which contains no sleeping accommodation and is a building— (a)no point of which is less than one metre from the boundary of its curtilage; or (b)which is constructed substantially of non-combustible material. 2. A detached building designed and intended to shelter people from the effects of nuclear, chemical or conventional weapons, and not used for any other purpose, if— (a)its floor area does not exceed 30m2; and (b)the excavation for the building is no closer to any exposed part of another building or structure than a distance equal to the depth of the excavation plus one metre. 3. A detached building, having a floor area which does not exceed 15m2, which contains no sleeping accommodation. Or if it is not going to be a garage then you can build: Extensions The extension of a building by the addition at ground level of— (a)a conservatory, porch, covered yard or covered way; or (b)a carport open on at least two sides; where the floor area of that extension does not exceed 30m2, provided that in the case of a conservatory or porch which is wholly or partly glazed, the glazing satisfies the requirements of F2[F3Part K4, K5.1, K5.2, K5.3, and K5.4] [F2Part N] of Schedule 1. (i.e it's basically safety glazing - my comment) The above are within Schedule 2 - Exempt buildings and work. Perhaps a nice porch to keep your tools in (although a porch should enclose a door into the house to really be a porch)

Bath only with a maximum temperature of 48 degrees C, the intention was to prevent scalding by getting into/being put into a large body of very hot water and not being able to exit swiftly, presumably one can dodge out of a too hot shower easier (although most showers have a high temperature stop that has to be over ridden, if like my wife you want a shower hot enough to peel off the skin!))

Most SE's I've dealt with have specified what information they want from a site investigation before they will consider designing foundations..........