Match the design to the use and the site.
A garden room, workshop or other ancillary building still needs an appropriate structural scheme. The proposed use, size, location and construction determine the questions that need answering.
Small domestic alterations still deserve careful engineering. The focus is on what carries the load, what will change and the information your contractor needs to price and plan the work. For outbuildings, the first conversation is about your objectives, what is known about the building and what needs to be established.
What the appointment can include
- Review of the intended use and proposed construction
- Design of specified structural elements
- Consideration of foundations and stability within scope
- Coordination of relevant envelope details
- Identification of planning and regulatory checks to obtain
The written quotation will identify the actual deliverables and exclusions for your project.
Questions to resolve
How will the building be used?
Start with the available drawings and observations. Where the information is incomplete, agree the necessary survey or investigation before making a design assumption.
What are the relevant site and boundary constraints?
Consider how the proposed work connects to the existing property and any specialist design. Record interfaces and limitations in the project brief.
What investigation is needed for the supports?
Make the responsibility clear in writing. A coordinated project needs a shared understanding of who provides, checks and uses each part of the information.
General information only; the project’s competent advisers must determine the applicable requirements.
Building regulations approval — GOV.UK · Approved Documents for England — GOV.UK · Building standards in Scotland · Building regulations in Wales · Building regulations in Northern Ireland
Explore an illustrative project
Our concept study explains the design questions without presenting generated imagery as evidence of client work.
Opening up a family kitchen ↗