GS Renovation designs and builds extensions across Dulwich, from side-return infills on narrow SE21 terraces to full wrap-around ground floors and loft-level additions. Working for over 30 years on the borough's bay-fronted Victorian and Edwardian houses, we handle foundations, steelwork, roofing and the full fit-out as a single, accountable project near Dulwich Park.
Side-return and rear extensions in Dulwich
The classic Dulwich extension fills in the side return, that narrow strip of dead space beside the rear closet wing, to widen a cramped kitchen into a proper open-plan kitchen-diner. We combine this with a rear extension to push the whole ground floor back into the garden. The existing rear wall usually comes out on a steel beam, sized by an engineer and signed off by building control, which opens the new space fully to the light.
These are old houses on made-up ground, so we start with proper foundations and groundworks, checking for existing drainage runs and the proximity of the neighbour's boundary. On the terraces around Dulwich Park the plots are tight and the walls are shared, so the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 usually applies where we build up to or astride the boundary. We serve the notices early to keep everything on programme.
Planning and permitted development in SE21
Whether your extension is permitted development or needs a full planning application to Southwark Council depends entirely on your property. Many single-storey rear extensions of a modest size fall under permitted development, while larger footprints, double-storey work, anything facing the street, or any home in a conservation area or that has already used its allowance will need permission from the council. We assess your house honestly before you commit.
Where permission is required we prepare and manage the application, and where the work is permitted development we can help secure a lawful development certificate for peace of mind when you sell. Either route, the structural side still needs building control approval under the Building Regulations, which is separate from planning. We coordinate the drawings, the notices and the inspections so the two approvals never trip each other up.
- Foundations, groundworks and steel frames
- Full fit-out, finishing and making good
- Architectural drawings and structural coordination
- Single and double storey extensions
- Side-return and rear extensions
The GS Renovation Difference in Dulwich
Dulwich homeowners choose GS Renovation because we run the whole extension, groundworks to final coat, with one team that knows how SE21 terraces behave. We are straight with you about whether the job is permitted development or needs planning from Southwark Council, we handle the party wall notices, and 30+ years locally means fewer surprises once the foundations are dug.
- Free, no-obligation quotations
- Over 30 years of hands-on experience
- Dedicated project management
- Fully insured and guaranteed work
- Building control and planning support
- Clean, tidy and reliable tradespeople