Bespoke homes, designed with care.

For anything that adds floor area, opens up a wall, or changes how your house works structurally, a good designer more than pays for themselves, particularly where planning permission is required. We help you decide on scope before you commit to a brief, prepare drawings that builders can price and deliver accurately, and stay involved through the planning process and the build itself.  For a cosmetic refresh, our interior design service still gives you access to all the architectural advice you may need, and makes sure any notifiable work is handled correctly. We'll talk through the right approach at the first meeting.

A design-and-build firm offers you a building. We offer a process: independent design and oversight, with the contractor chosen separately and held to your interests. It usually means a more bespoke result, and a second pair of eyes on quality and cost throughout the build.

Start with a free consultation. Stephen and/or Laure will come to your home, walk through it with you, and talk through what's possible, with no fees, drawings or commitments. Most people leave that conversation with a much clearer head.

A side return fills the narrow alley alongside a Victorian or Edwardian terrace, usually to widen the kitchen. An outrigger is the existing back projection on those terraces. Refurbishing or extending it can transform the rear of the house. A loft extension converts the roof void into habitable space, typically a master bedroom suite or office. These can extend over the outrigger and can involve lifting the ridge of the roof.

It depends on where you live, what you're building, and the specific rules that apply to your house. Most extensions and loft conversions in SE London qualify for Permitted Development — meaning you can build without a formal planning application. A standard single-storey rear extension on a Victorian terrace in Peckham or Herne Hill, built within the permitted size limits, usually qualifies. We often still apply for a Lawful Development Certificate to confirm this in writing, which protects you when you come to sell. Where it gets more complicated: conservation areas change the rules. Parts of East Dulwich, Dulwich Village, Nunhead, and several other SE London neighbourhoods are designated conservation areas, and some Permitted Development rights are restricted there — particularly for roof alterations and side extensions facing a highway. An Article 4 direction can remove further rights from specific streets or areas within LB Southwark or LB Lewisham. We check all of this at the first consultation. Most projects have a clear route. Where they don't, we'll explain the options before you commit to anything.