House Extensions Dalston
Single storey rear and double storey extensions in Dalston, planning, structure and build under one contract.
- Rated 4.9 from 31 reviews on MyBuilder
- Single-storey rear extension from £40,000
- Free site survey, itemised quote
GS Renovation builds kitchen extensions and house extensions across Dalston, adding space to the Victorian and Edwardian terraces of E8 without losing their character. We start with one E8 question, house or flat, because flats have no permitted development rights and need a full application to Hackney Council.
In Dalston, a single-storey rear extension typically starts from £40,000, or £2,000 to £2,800 per m² (indicative London ranges, Architecture for London, Resi, MyBuilder and Checkatrade, 2026). GS Renovation Ltd, a building contractor based in Potters Bar, does the work in Dalston: the structural engineer we appoint designs the structure, we build it, and building control signs it off.
Price guide
| Work | Indicative London range |
|---|---|
| Single-storey rear extension | from £40,000 |
| Rear extension, per m² | £2,000 to £2,800 |
| Side return, per m² | £2,400 to £3,200 |
| Wraparound, per m² | £2,400 to £3,200 |
| Double storey, per m² | £1,800 to £2,600 |
| Basement extension | see the basement page |
Indicative London ranges (Architecture for London, Resi, MyBuilder and Checkatrade, 2026), not a quotation. Prices checked September 2026. Full breakdown: Extension Costs & Planning.
Quick estimate for Dalston
Dalston range: choose above
Side return and rear kitchen extensions in Dalston
Houses make up 21% of Dalston's homes, and on those terraces the usual job is a kitchen extension: infilling the strip beside the rear closet wing so a narrow galley kitchen becomes a kitchen-diner across the full width of the house. A wrap-around adds the rear as well, and a ground floor flat can take the same kitchen extension with planning permission and the freeholder's consent. Each needs new foundations sensitive to the neighbouring terrace, steel beams over the openings, and a roof that ties cleanly into the original bay-fronted house.
For a terraced house the permitted development test turns on depth, height and any earlier extension. In a conservation area a side infill counts as a side extension and needs planning permission, and Hackney has Article 4 directions in the De Beauvoir, St Mark's and Shacklewell Green conservation areas, the Shacklewell Green one removing householder permitted development on the streets it names. We check your street before you commit. Because the new walls sit hard against your neighbours, party wall notices are almost always required, served early by you as building owner so the digging starts on time.
Housing in Dalston
About 7,500 homes are listed for Dalston, and the mix is 21% houses to 79% flats, with 49% built after 1945, 2% in 1919 to 1939 and 49% earlier. Since most homes here are flats, a flat in Dalston has no householder permitted development rights, so extending one needs planning permission and the freeholder's consent.
What Hackney's extensions SPD means for a Dalston terraced house
Hackney's residential extensions and alterations SPD came into effect in January 2026. Its draft set the depth of a single storey rear extension to a terrace house at no more than 3m from the rear elevation of the original dwelling. On a Dalston terrace that wording matters: the depth is measured from the house as first built, so an earlier lean-to or conservatory does not move the starting line. We measure the original rear wall before the designer draws anything, and check the adopted SPD text against the draft, since the draft is where these limits come from. They bite where planning permission is needed; a single storey rear extension within permitted development limits needs none, even in a conservation area, unless an Article 4 direction removes that right.
Two further tests from the draft shape a Dalston plot. Any extension should retain at least 50% of the original rear garden, which on a short terrace garden can rule out a side infill and a deep rear projection together. The 45 degree rule then draws a line from the centre of the nearest ground floor habitable room window of the adjoining building, and the extension should not cross it. On a terrace that window belongs to the neighbour, so its exact position, whether in their main rear wall or in their closet wing, is surveyed early.
Double storey extensions in E8
A second storey over the new ground floor can add a bedroom, but plot depth and the light reaching the adjoining terrace decide whether it is allowed. These bigger projects change the roofline and are more likely to need a full planning application to Hackney Council rather than qualifying as permitted development, so early advice saves time and money.
Every extension here goes through building control for its foundations, structure, insulation, drainage and fire safety, which is separate from planning. On site the order is fixed: the inspector sees the trench before concrete goes in and the new drainage before it is backfilled, and only then do the fit-out trades start.
- Levels, drainage and landscaping made good around the new build
- Flat and pitched roofs with rooflights or lanterns
- First fix and second fix plumbing and electrics throughout
VOA Council Tax stock of properties, March 2025, for Dalston East and Dalston Kingsland. Counts rounded by the VOA.
Why Dalston Homeowners Choose GS Renovation
Dalston homeowners choose GS Renovation because we build the whole extension, from foundations to final coat, as one accountable project. We confirm the planning or permitted development route first, give you the drawings for the party wall notices your terrace needs before a trench date is set, and book Hackney building control at each stage. Our founder's 30+ years on the tools go into what gets buried: footings and the drain run below.
- Foundation depth set after trial holes, drains and trees are checked
- Building control inspected at foundation, damp course and steel stages
- Aftercare and snagging support once the job is finished
Built a new extension at rear of property. Laid foundations, drainage, raised floor, new roof and completed all fixtures and interior decoration…
Saaid is the best craftsman I have worked with. He knows what he is doing from the very beginning. He has a great knowledge of construction…
George always kept to commitments and arrived on time. He offered helpful suggestions during his initial visit and promptly provided a reasonably…
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions about House Extensions Dalston
Can you quote house extensions for an E8 property over the phone?
GS Renovation will not give a real quotation for house extensions in Dalston over the phone, only the range, £2,000 to £2,800 per m² for a rear extension (indicative). On 07472 424 226 we can explain what moves the cost and whether the job needs a Hackney Council building control inspection of the foundations before concrete is poured, but the E8 property has to be seen first. Builders who quote blind across Hackney revise the figure once the floor or walls are opened.
Will a Dalston closet-wing infill need planning?
First, is it a house? A single-storey rear extension on an E8 house is often permitted development, but a side infill in a conservation area needs planning permission, and size limits, an earlier extension or an Article 4 direction can mean applying to Hackney Council, as every flat must. We assess your specific terrace before design, so you know which route applies and whether party wall notices are needed, before any commitment.
Can I extend my Dalston ground floor flat under permitted development?
No. Permitted development rights belong to houses, so extending a flat or maisonette needs a full planning application to Hackney Council, plus the freeholder's consent under the lease. Building regulations apply either way. Since most Dalston homes are flats, we confirm which you own before any drawing starts, because it decides the whole route.
What if a public sewer runs under my planned Dalston extension?
Then Part H is engaged, and nothing gets built over or hard against that pipe until the water company has said yes. Behind E8 terraces a single run sometimes collects waste from a whole row of houses. We trace the drainage with a camera survey before the foundation design is fixed, because bridging or diverting a run changes both the footings and the sequence of work.
Does a Dalston extension mean serving a party wall notice?
Very likely, and often two notices. Digging footings deeper than next door's, within 3 metres of their house, calls for one month's warning; bearing the opening-up beam in the shared wall calls for two months'. On a narrow E8 plot both tend to apply. Neighbours can consent or dissent; a dissent leads to a surveyor's award.
How well insulated must a Dalston extension be?
To current Part L standards for walls, floor and roof, whatever the age of the house it joins. That thickens the walls, which on a narrow E8 plot eats into internal width, and deepens the roof build-up, which affects height against the neighbour's wall. Glazing counts as well, so a big rooflight or sliding doors are weighed against the rest of the envelope at design stage.
How can a Dalston homeowner prove an extension is permitted development before building it?
With a lawful development certificate. Hackney Council charges householders a fee for one and says it will issue the certificate within 8 weeks. For an extension it is a route for houses only, since a flat lacks householder permitted development rights and needs a planning application instead. The certificate is worth having before the first trench, because a buyer's solicitor later asks how the extension was authorised, and a certificate answers that where an informal view or an old email does not.
Does a Dalston rear extension have to pay the community infrastructure levy?
Not normally, if it is small. The Mayoral CIL is charged across Hackney with a Hackney CIL in addition, but Hackney Council says development of less than 100 square metres will not normally be assessed as liable unless it is a whole dwelling. A larger extension built by a self builder can claim exemption, yet the claim must be made and accepted before development commences. That puts a paperwork step ahead of the first spade, and we raise it in Dalston before any start date is set.
Is Hackney's written pre-application advice worth getting for a Dalston extension?
Where a scheme sits close to the depth, garden or 45 degree tests, yes. From 1 April 2026 Hackney Council charges householders for a written pre-application request, with a lower follow-up fee. A written view before the full application shows which element is likely to meet resistance, so the designer adjusts one drawing rather than redrawing a refused scheme. For a plain single storey extension well inside the draft limits, it adds time without adding much certainty.
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