Kitchen extension interior in a Barking IG11 terraced home, Barking and Dagenham

Barking · IG11 · Barking & Dagenham

Rear Extension Drawings in Barking IG11

Fixed-fee, MCIAT-chartered rear extension drawings for Barking (IG11) homeowners — London Borough of Barking and Dagenham validation and local constraints handled from the start.

Barking (IG11) mixes a medieval abbey-and-town-centre core with Victorian, Edwardian and interwar housing, so extension and loft work here depends heavily on how close a property sits to the historic centre and the river.

Two conservation areas — Abbey and Barking Town Centre and Abbey Road Riverside — plus the borough-wide 2022 Article 4 on upward extensions mean we check the boundary and Article 4 position before advising permitted development versus a full application.

Proposed floor plan

Barking IG11

Barking (IG11) — planning at a glance

Council: London Borough of Barking and Dagenham
Postcode district: IG11
Planning portal: View the Barking & Dagenham planning portal
Housing stock: IG11 ranges from the historic Barking Abbey and town-centre core through Victorian and Edwardian terraces to interwar semis and later suburban housing spreading out from the town centre.
Article 4: Barking and Dagenham confirmed a borough-wide Article 4 direction in January 2022 (excluding designated industrial land) removing the permitted-development right to add storeys to homes, alongside separate HMO controls, so upward extensions in IG11 need planning permission.
Conservation: Abbey and Barking Town Centre Conservation AreaAbbey Road Riverside Conservation Area
Sample streets: Abbey Road · East Street · North Street · Linton Road
Local constraints: The Abbey and Barking Town Centre Conservation Area protects the medieval abbey ruins, St Margaret's church and the historic town-centre streets, restricting alterations within its boundaryThe Abbey Road Riverside Conservation Area adds controls along the historic riverside settingThe borough-wide 2022 Article 4 removes permitted-development rights for adding storeys to existing homesScheduled-monument and listed-building sensitivities around Barking Abbey affect nearby proposals

Planning in Barking (IG11): what to know before you apply

Rear extensions and loft conversions across suburban IG11 are often achievable, but the borough-wide 2022 Article 4 means any added-storey scheme needs planning permission, and properties inside the Abbey town-centre or Abbey Road Riverside conservation areas face tighter heritage control near the abbey and church.

Typical Barking housing stock

IG11 ranges from the historic Barking Abbey and town-centre core through Victorian and Edwardian terraces to interwar semis and later suburban housing spreading out from the town centre.

Streets we regularly draw for in Barking

Abbey Road · East Street · North Street · Linton Road

What IG11 is actually built of

Measured from 261 classified residential buildings in IG11, not from a description of the area.

Barking IG11 housing mix

Residential building form across the IG11 postcode district, from 261 classified buildings.

Attached on more than one side	60%
Attached on one side	38%
Detached	2%
Median building footprint	59 m²
Addresses per buildingAbove about 2 means flats and maisonettes dominate	1.92
Buildings classified	261

Source: Ordnance Survey National Geographic Database (derived statistics). Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right 2026. Extracted 2026-08-17.

Rear Extension Drawings for Barking (IG11) homes: the package and the process

Depth is the number the application turns on, and it has to be measured from the original rear wall of the house rather than from whatever is there now. The drawings carry that dimension, the eaves and ridge heights, the position of any rooflight, and the boundary distances on both sides.

Where the scheme goes beyond the standard allowance and relies on the larger home extension route, the drawings serve a second purpose: they are what the council sends to the neighbours during the consultation. A clear, dimensioned proposed elevation answers the objection about overshadowing before it is made.

Depth is limited by the plot as much as by the rules. A long garden behind a terrace can take the full allowance, while a short one runs out before the rules do — and on a semi or detached house the same depth reads very differently from the boundary.

Do I need planning permission for a rear extension in London?

Many single-storey rear extensions qualify as permitted development, meaning no planning application is needed, provided depth, height and materials stay within set limits. That changes if your property sits in a conservation area or is subject to an Article 4 direction, both of which can remove permitted development rights across a street or borough — in that case a full householder planning application is required regardless of size.

Even where an extension qualifies, most homeowners obtain a Lawful Development Certificate to confirm that status in writing before building — useful for mortgage lenders, buyers and Building Control. We check your property against your borough's constraints before recommending a route.

How deep can a single-storey rear extension go?

Depth is the main constraint on a rear extension, and it depends on your house type and whether you use standard permitted development or the larger home extension scheme.

Permitted development

Standard permitted development allows a single-storey rear extension up to 3 metres deep for terraced and semi-detached houses, or 4 metres for detached houses, generally with eaves height limited to match or stay close to the existing house.

Larger home extension scheme

The prior-approval scheme extends this to 6 metres for terraced and semi-detached houses and 8 metres for detached houses. Your council writes to affected neighbours; if none object within the notification period, approval follows without a full planning application. If an objection is raised, the council assesses the impact on neighbouring light and outlook itself, rather than automatically refusing, so a well-considered design still has a good chance of approval.

Designing the kitchen-diner: rooflights, bi-folds and daylight

Most rear extensions exist to create one open-plan kitchen, dining and living space, so the drawing work focuses on getting light and flow right within the depth you are allowed.

Structural opening sized for bi-fold or sliding doors across most of the rear elevation
Rooflights or a roof lantern positioned to light the centre of the room, away from the shadow line of the main house
Open-plan layout tested against the 45-degree rule, which protects daylight to your neighbours' windows and can limit how close a flank wall or roof comes to the boundary
Floor build-up and threshold detail coordinated so the new floor meets the existing one without a step

Rear extension routes at a glance
Route	When it applies	Typical fee
Permitted development (Lawful Development Certificate)	Depth within 3m (terraced/semi) or 4m (detached), height and materials within PD limits	PD/LDC pack ~£950–£1,450
Larger home extension (prior approval)	Depth up to 6m (terraced/semi) or 8m (detached), with neighbour notification	from £1,100
Full householder planning permission	Extension exceeds PD/larger-home limits, or the property is in a conservation area with an Article 4 direction	Full Planning pack ~£1,600–£2,400
Planning + Building Regulations (structural)	Combined planning and construction-ready pack with structural calculations for the opening and roof	Planning + Building Regs pack ~£2,200–£3,850

Sheet from a rear extension drawings package drawn for a Barking property in IG11, showing the existing and proposed arrangement at scale — A sheet from the rear extension drawings package we submit to London Borough of Barking and Dagenham for Barking (IG11) properties.

Also in Barking IG11

Planning Permission Planning Drawings Architectural Drawings Building Regulations Drawings Loft Conversion Drawings Rear Extension Drawings across Barking & Dagenham Rear Extension Drawings across London

FAQ

Rear Extension Drawings in Barking IG11 — FAQs

How much does a rear extension cost to design in London?+

Rear extension drawings start from £1,100, with the final fee set by the route your extension takes — permitted development, prior approval or full planning — and whether you need building regulations and structural calculations bundled in. The fee is fixed and agreed upfront.

Do I need an architect for a rear extension?+

No. DrawingsDirect is an MCIAT-chartered architectural technologist practice, producing the same council-accepted drawings as an architect for a fixed fee typically around 30% lower.

How long does it take to get rear extension drawings?+

Drawings are typically ready around 7 days from survey. Once submitted, councils have a statutory 8-week period to determine a standard householder planning application.

What is the 45-degree rule?+

It is a daylight test many London councils apply to check that a rear extension does not block too much light to a neighbour's nearest window, measured as a line drawn at 45 degrees from that window. We check it before submission, not after a refusal.

Will I need a Party Wall Agreement for a rear extension?+

Only if your foundations or new walls sit on or near the boundary with a neighbouring property. A straightforward rear extension set within your own plot often does not trigger the Party Wall etc. Act 1996, unlike a Side Return or Wraparound extension, which usually does.

Do I need planning permission for an extension in Barking & Dagenham?+

On the Becontree Estate's interwar semis and the Victorian terraces around Barking, many single-storey rear extensions and lofts can fall within permitted development, so a full application isn't always needed. Conservation areas such as Barking Town Centre and Chadwell Heath restrict this. We check your address first and can confirm permitted development with a Lawful Development Certificate where it qualifies.

What does the council expect for an extension on the Becontree Estate?+

The Becontree Estate has a consistent interwar cottage-style character the council expects extensions to respect — matching the building line, roof form and materials of the street. We design to that established pattern rather than imposing a standard template, which is what carries applications to consent on the estate.

What does the borough-wide HMO Article 4 direction affect?+

Barking & Dagenham applies a borough-wide Article 4 direction removing permitted development rights for change of use to an HMO (C3 to C4), so a conversion to a house in multiple occupation needs a full application anywhere in the borough. It doesn't affect a standard family extension or loft, but we confirm whether it applies to your intended use before advising.

How long does Barking & Dagenham Council take to decide?+

The council determines most householder applications within the statutory eight-week period once validated; conservation cases can attract additional consultation. The commonest delay is a validation query, so we prepare submissions to the council's checklist with correctly scaled existing and proposed drawings and a location plan.

How much do planning drawings cost in Barking & Dagenham?+

We agree a fixed fee before starting, usually around 30% below an architect's fee for the same council-accepted drawings, with free redraws until the council approves. A single-storey rear, a loft and a conservation-area application differ in complexity, so we quote once we understand your street and project rather than by the hour.

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