Modern/contemporary or box standard

[Bluebaron]

Looking to do a self build on a 1950’s development. It’s at the end of a cul-de-sac. It’s a small plot for a 3-4 bed detached maybe 100-150sqm.

 

I will eventually go have a chat with the planners but was wondering if anyone in a similar situation got permission for a modern/contemporary home as apposed to something with the classic lines of “brick/tender to match”, “roof tiles tj match” etc?!

 

 

[Temp]

It has been done. Very dependant on the planners. How similar are other house in the road? The more variety the better your chances. If they all have a very similar style then planners frequently want you to propose something similar/complementary and may even want you to use the same bricks. 

 

The service you get from the planners is also very variable. In some areas you would be very lucky to get a meeting. They may just advise you to send in a proposal and pay for pre-app advice. The pre-app advice you actually get ight not be very useful or constructive. In my area the planner (singular) appears to be shared with another county. Conservation officers are also part time. No wonder we can't built enough houses.

 

If they want to see a proposal first I recommend including a street view drawing. This would typically be a drawing of your proposed  house and those either side as seen from the road. Our Architect did this using pen, ink and water colour. The use of that media allows some artistic license and harmonises the three buildings more than CAD drawings or a mix of photos and drawings would.  Many CAD programs (Inc Sketchup) can convert a CAD drawing into something that looks like an artists sketch using styles. I wanted to build an oak clad building and the CAD model gave every plank straight edges. Using one of these styles made it look far more rustic.

 

 

 

[Mr Punter]

You can easily have a modern twist on a design without it being a pastiche.  Go with what you want.  It is your land and money.

[DevilDamo]

Get George Clarke or Kevin McCloud on side and you’re laughing 😉

 

www.thesun.co.uk/fabulous/4775498/couple-transform-embarrassing-flat-into-spacious-two-storey-house-viewers-not-impressed-how-it-looks/amp/

[Alan Ambrose]

Planning may well take longer than your actual build does, so suggest starting the conversation with your LPA asap. If you’re lucky, an informal chat; not so lucky a pre-app with a sketch and a list of materials; unlucky - to get any sense at all you may need to do a full application.

 

You can search for similar passed and failed applications in your area fairly easily and quickly - so I would spend half a day doing that. The quick and reasonably accurate way is to chat to a local planning consultant.

 

You can also get a feel for the speed and accuracy of your LPA from the .gov planning stats listed by LPA.