Design Buy Build Issue 31 2018 | Page 22

We requested a Certificate of Lawful Development from the local authority to ensure that the extension that we'd designed could be legally built within the permitted development framework, meaning no planning permission was required. During the initial stages of the building work, a well was discovered between the house and the adjoining property, which were once a large detached home. The foundations were due to be laid where the well was positioned, so we assessed the structure of the well with the local building control manager, and deemed it unsafe to continue. Unfortunately, the owners, who hoped to keep the well as a feature, it had to be filled in with concrete and capped for the building work to continue safely. Following concerns from the building control department that the original extension design included too much glazing and wouldn't have met the building regulations for insulation, we agreed an optimal number of windows that the client was also happy with. 22