Harrow, Pinner, Stanmore, Rayners Lane, Kenton

Loft conversion in Harrow: dormers and hip-to-gables

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  • Hip-to-gable and dormers
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What suits your house?

The design of your house and its roof determines which conversions are typical. Choose both below to view the options a specialist is likely to discuss, from the most common to the less frequent.

Type of house

Roof shape

Hipped means the roof slopes on the sides as well as front and back. Ask a specialist if you are not sure which you have.

    A guide to what is common, not a promise. The right choice also depends on the height of the roof space and on your street.

    Bright attic office with two desks and a large roof window
    Space for work, sleep or both

    Four ways to convert a loft

    Each type changes the roof in a different way. Ask a specialist which one your house can take.

    Rooflights

    Roof windows fitted into the current slope. It's the cheapest and least disruptive option, but you need enough height already.

    Best onHomes with a roof space that's high enough and don't require much extra flooring.

    Rear dormer

    A box that extends from the back slope, adding floor space and headroom. Typically chosen for terraces.

    Best onTerraced and semi-detached houses needing a full-height room at the rear.

    Hip-to-gable

    The sloping side of a hipped roof is converted into a vertical wall, allowing for a staircase and a larger floor.

    Best onEnd-of-terrace, semi-detached, and detached homes with a hipped roof.

    Mansard

    The back slope is transformed to be almost vertical with a flat top, offering the most space and usually requiring planning permission.

    Best onTerraces where maximising floor space is crucial.

    From first visit to completion certificate

    Six steps, in this order. Planning and party wall paperwork can run alongside the drawings.

    1Survey
    Check the height, inspect the rafters, the chimney breasts, and potential staircase locations.
    2Drawings
    Architectural plans and structural calculations for the steel beams and new flooring.
    3Permissions
    Verify planning requirements or get a lawful development certificate if it's permitted development. Issue party wall notices if walls are shared.
    4Building Regulations
    Submit an application or building notice, followed by inspections during the construction.
    5The build
    Start with steelwork and flooring, then proceed to the roof shell, stairs, insulation, electrics, and plastering. On-site, it takes several weeks.
    6Sign-off
    Obtain a completion certificate from building control. Keep this: a buyer's solicitor will need it.
    Orange tiled roof with three green-framed dormer windows

    Six checks before work starts

    A loft conversion touches the structure of the house and the walls you share. These are the answers worth having in writing.

    • Is the structural engineer's design part of the package, and who covers the cost of calculations?
    • Who handles the Building Regulations application and who gets the completion certificate?
    • Who issues the party wall notices, and who pays for the neighbour's surveyor if they hire one?
    • Are protected stairs, fire doors, and interconnected smoke alarms included? A loft with a bedroom needs a secure escape route.
    • Is payment divided into stages that follow the progress, instead of a large upfront amount?
    • What's excluded: decoration, flooring, heating, and electrical certificates?

    Harrow and its neighbourhoods

    Harrow is Metroland: large areas of 1930s semi-detached houses, many with hipped roofs, which suits hip-to-gable and rear dormer conversions. The London Borough of Harrow is the planning authority, and some streets and the hill itself are conservation areas. Type your postcode in the quote form to check yours.

    HA1
    • Harrow
    • Harrow on the Hill
    HA2
    • Rayners Lane
    • South Harrow
    • North Harrow
    HA3
    • Kenton
    • Wealdstone
    • Harrow Weald
    HA5
    • Pinner
    • Hatch End
    • Eastcote
    HA7
    • Stanmore

    Frequently asked questions

    Many are done under permitted development: the added roof space must not exceed 40 cubic metres on a terraced house or 50 on a semi-detached or detached one, the roof must not be raised above the highest part of the existing roof, and nothing may extend beyond the front slope. Flats, conservation areas, and houses already extended have different rules. Contact the London Borough of Harrow for specifics.

    Yes. A new room in the roof must adhere to rules on structure, stairs, fire escape, insulation, ventilation, and electrics, regardless of planning permission needs. The inspector approves it at the end.

    If you share a wall with a neighbour, like in a terrace or a semi, and your work involves it, such as when steel beams rest on it, the Party Wall etc. Act requires you to give notice first. Your builder or architect can manage the notices.

    On-site, a dormer conversion typically takes several weeks. The design, drawings, and approvals occur beforehand and add time, so plan from the initial survey instead of when the scaffolding is up.

    A typical starting point is about 2.2 metres from the top of the ceiling joists to the underside of the ridge. The new floor and insulation will take some of this space, and the stairs need headroom too.

    The conversion type, structural work, stairs, windows, insulation, electrics, plastering, fees for the architect, the engineer, building control, and party wall surveyors, VAT, payment stages, and what's excluded.

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