Commercial Fit-Out Havering
Shop, cafe, restaurant, salon and clinic fit-outs in Havering, shopfront to counter under one contract, built around your opening date.
- Rated 4.9 from 31 reviews on MyBuilder
- UK guide: £1,500 to £3,000 per m²
- Free site survey, itemised quote
Commercial fit-out in Havering means shops, cafes, restaurants, salons, clinics and small gyms on high streets and parades, with Romford Market Place and Hornchurch town centre among them. Havering Policy 13 supports town centre proposals that provide high quality shop front design and signage and active ground floor frontages, so the front of the unit matters as much as the room behind it. We strip out and build the unit to your designer's layout and the consents you hold.
For Havering, published UK guides put refurbishing a retail space at £1,500 to £3,000 per m² and a restaurant or cafe at £2,000 to £4,500 per m², and London units usually cost more (MyBuilder, 2026). GS Renovation Ltd, a building contractor based in Potters Bar, does the work in Havering: our own trades do the strip-out, back of house, counter fitting and finishes, and we coordinate the shopfront, extraction, electrical and fire specialists the unit needs.
Price guide
| Work | Indicative range |
|---|---|
| Retail space refurbishment | £1,500 to £3,000 per m² |
| Restaurant or cafe refurbishment | £2,000 to £4,500 per m² |
| Shop fitting only: counters, display and fixtures, 2024 guide | £60 to £140 per sq ft |
| Aluminium shopfront, single bay up to about 4m wide | £2,000 to £5,000 |
| Cafe kitchen extraction with basic odour control | £5,000 to £12,000 |
Indicative ranges from published cost guides (MyBuilder, Checkatrade, Urban Shopfronts and Fan Rescue, 2026), not a quotation. Most are UK-wide figures and London work usually costs more; a row marked London is a London figure. Prices checked September 2026.
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Shopfronts and security in Havering town centres
A new shopfront in a Havering town centre is expected to look open, not shuttered. Havering's Local Plan prefers laminated glass and internal security grills to external shutters in shop front design. For a tenant that changes the order of work: the glazing specification, the frame depth and the grille track are fixed early. A laminated pane is heavier and an internal grille needs clear space behind the glass before the display or counter goes in.
Signage sits in the same conversation. Havering Policy 13 backs active ground floor frontages, so a blank vinyl panel across the whole window works against what the plan supports. Illuminated fascia and projecting signs usually need advertisement consent, which the owner or their agent seeks. We build the fascia, bracket and lighting to the approved drawing and leave cable routes ready for the sign maker, so the sign goes up the day the shop is finished.
Fitting out a unit in Romford Conservation Area
Work to a building in Romford Conservation Area needs more care at the front and at the roofline. Romford Conservation Area was designated in 1968 to protect the Market Place and the group of old buildings at the western end of Market Place. A fit-out behind an older frontage there may meet timber floors, thick solid walls and past alterations, so we survey before quoting and expect to repair or reinforce as we go.
Taking a building down is controlled more tightly. In Havering, the total or substantial demolition of any building of 115 cubic metres or more in a conservation area needs consent, now given nationally as planning permission for relevant demolition. A normal strip out of partitions, ceilings and shop fittings is not demolition of the building. Removing a whole rear outbuilding of that size can be, so the owner or their agent confirms the position with the planning officer before it goes into the programme.
Use classes, takeaways and kitchen extraction in Havering
The use class of a Havering unit decides whether a new business can move in without planning permission. Class E covers shops, cafes, restaurants, clinics, gyms and offices, so a salon replacing a clothes shop is usually a fit-out question only. A hot food takeaway, a pub or a bar is sui generis, and changing a unit to one of those needs planning permission, which the owner or their agent applies for before we start.
If the building is listed, the works themselves are a separate question: anything that affects its character, inside or out, needs listed building consent from Havering Council, and carrying it out without consent is a criminal offence.
Food units carry the most services work. A cafe or restaurant kitchen needs an extract system with odour control, often a route for the duct to discharge above the roofline, and grease separation in the drainage. In Havering you must make a full plans application, not a building notice, if you are building near a public sewer, which a new drain connection at the back of a parade can be. We programme the extract and drainage early, because they fix the ceiling and floor levels.
Trading hours, deliveries and the flats above a Havering parade
Where a Havering shop unit sits under flats, the fit-out has to live with the people upstairs. Noisy work such as breaking out floors, drilling concrete and cutting tiles stays within the council's permitted hours. With flats above, consent for noisy work outside them is rarely granted, while quiet tasks like decorating and fixing joinery can run into the evening. We agree the loud days with the landlord before the programme is fixed and tell the residents above, in writing, which days will be loud.
Deliveries are the other constraint on a Havering parade. Loading bays and service roads are shared with trading neighbours, so materials come in early and waste goes out the same way. Where a front shop is being gutted, a skip on the highway needs a licence, and Havering requires 10 working days notice for a scaffolding or hoarding licence if the front needs screening. The hoarding keeps the pavement safe and gives you somewhere to announce the opening date.
- Internal lattice grilles and shutters designed into the shopfront
- Salon, barber and beauty treatment room fit-outs
- Programmes worked back from your opening date
VOA Council Tax stock of properties, March 2025, for all 30 statistical areas in Havering. Counts rounded by the VOA.
Trusted Commercial Fit-Out in Havering
A tenant is often paying rent before the fit-out starts, so we plan the programme around opening day. We survey the unit, agree a written scope against your designer's drawings, and sequence strip out, services, partitions, ceilings, floors, counters and joinery to keep trades working in parallel. We work around the neighbours and the flats above. A registered gas engineer commissions any catering gas, a registered electrician tests the new circuits, and the extract and grease trap are running before the first service.
- Photographs kept at each stage for your records
- Counter, display and back of house built by our own trades
- Shopfront, sign and extract consents checked before anything is ordered
Giorgio is an excellent and intelligent workman, and with very reasonable prices! He installed a kitchen extractor fan in a complicated situation…
George was very friendly and helpful from start to finish. He worked really hard to ensure our kitchen was installed to a high standard and was…
Excellent service. George's knowledge and skills are the best in the market. He knows what he is doing, does really high quality work, gives good…
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions about Commercial Fit-Out Havering
What should I budget to fit out a unit in Havering?
Start from the UK guide of £1,500 to £3,000 per square metre for a retail refurbishment, or £2,000 to £4,500 for a restaurant or cafe (MyBuilder, 2026), and add for London prices. Consent fees, the landlord's costs and equipment such as ovens and tills sit outside the building work. A Havering quote follows a survey of the unit and your layout.
Can a Havering shop use external roller shutters?
Havering's preference runs against them. The Local Plan prefers laminated glass and internal security grills to external shutters in shop front design. Plan security from the inside: a laminated glazing specification, an internal grille set behind the glass and an alarm. A new shopfront or an external shutter normally needs planning permission, so the owner or their agent confirms the position before we order glass.
What does Havering want from shop signage in a town centre?
Havering Policy 13 supports town centre proposals that provide high quality shop front design and signage and active ground floor frontages. In practice that means a fascia in proportion with the building, lighting that picks out the lettering and a window you can see into. We build the fascia and lighting to the approved design.
Is there extra control on fit-outs in Romford Market Place?
Yes, at the front. Romford Conservation Area was designated in 1968 to protect the Market Place and the group of old buildings at the western end of Market Place. External changes such as a new shopfront or signage are judged against that character. The designation itself does not control internal partitions and finishes, although building regulations still apply to them.
Which other Havering conservation areas have shops in them?
Havering's conservation areas are Corbets Tey, Cranham, Gidea Park, Havering-atte-Bower, Langtons, North Ockendon, RAF Hornchurch, Rainham, Romford, St Andrews and St Leonards. Romford's takes in the Market Place, and St Andrews lies to the east of Hornchurch town centre. Check the designation before designing a new front, because it shapes the shopfront and sign that will be accepted.
Does opening a takeaway in a Havering unit need planning permission?
Yes. A hot food takeaway is sui generis, outside Class E, so changing a shop or cafe into one needs planning permission. The same applies to a pub or bar. A cafe, restaurant, salon, clinic or gym moving into a Class E unit usually does not, although a new shopfront, signs or an external extract duct can need consent of their own.
Does a cafe fit-out in Havering need full plans approval?
Yes. A cafe is covered by fire safety law, so its building regulations work goes in as a full plans application rather than a building notice. In Havering a full plans application is also required if you are building near a public sewer, which a new kitchen drain or grease separator can bring the work close to. The drawings show escape routes, extract and drainage before we build.
Does a Havering shop fit-out need the landlord's consent as well as the council's?
Usually, yes, where the lease makes alterations subject to consent. A shop landlord will look closely at the shopfront, the fascia and its lighting, any extract duct through the rear wall and the effect on the flats above. Your designer provides the drawings and we provide the method statement and programme. Get the landlord's written consent before ordering the shopfront or the extract, because both are made to measure.
What does a Havering shop or cafe need for disabled access after a fit-out?
Building regulations Part M applies to the parts of the premises the fit-out alters, and the work must not leave access worse than before. Where the entrance is rebuilt, that can mean a level or ramped approach and a door wide enough for a wheelchair. Where customer toilets are added, an accessible WC may be needed. A lowered counter section helps too. The approved drawings fix the details and building control checks them.
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