Home renovations in Harrow

Renovating an interwar Harrow house

Most of Harrow's family houses were built between the wars, so they are now close to a century old. Typical renovations involve opening up the ground floor by removing or widening the wall between the front and back rooms, replacing old wiring and pipework, insulating floors and lofts, and refitting kitchens and bathrooms. Original features such as stained-glass panels, bay windows and tiled porches are often worth repairing rather than replacing, because they define the character of the street.

Older houses and conservation areas

With 30 conservation areas, Harrow has many houses where changes to the outside, such as windows, doors, roofs and front boundaries, can need planning permission because of Article 4 directions. Applications in conservation areas are reviewed with the council's Conservation Officer, so specifying matching materials and details at the outset saves time. Listed buildings need listed building consent for internal alterations too.

Approvals

Internal work rarely needs planning permission, but removing structural walls needs Building Regulations approval and a structural engineer's design, and notifiable electrical work and all gas work must be done by competent, registered installers.

Garden rooms and outbuildings

Many renovations add a garden room. Harrow's guide suggests siting outbuildings in the final quarter of the garden, at least 2 metres from the boundaries, where they can be up to 4 metres high with a dual-pitched roof or 3 metres otherwise; within 2 metres of a boundary, 2.5 metres is recommended.