GS Renovation builds loft conversions across the borough of Southwark, where Georgian and early Victorian terraces near Borough and Walworth sit alongside the bay-fronted streets of SE15, SE21 and SE22 and the warehouse conversions by the river. The right scheme depends on the era and the designation of your street. We build to the engineer's design.
Reading the roof before choosing the scheme
In the later terraces around Peckham Rye and East Dulwich, a rear closet wing usually makes an L-shaped dormer the best return, giving a double bedroom and a shower room in one move. In the older Georgian and early Victorian stock nearer Borough Market and the South Bank, roofs are shallower and often hidden behind parapets, where a mansard rebuilds the roof to gain volume and generally reads better to a conservation officer than a bulky dormer would.
Not every Southwark address is a house. A large share of SE1 and SE16 is flats, warehouse conversions and new-build, where the roof space belongs to the freeholder and a conversion is not usually possible without a grant of the airspace and formal consent. We identify which of those you own at the first visit, because the answer changes the entire conversation from construction to consent.
Southwark Council consents and the regulations that always apply
Where rights exist, permitted development allows 40 cubic metres on a terrace and 50 on a semi-detached or detached house, subject to matching materials, nothing projecting forward of the roof plane, no verandas or balconies and obscure glazed side windows. Southwark has substantial conservation area coverage and listed buildings across the borough, both of which remove those rights, so we confirm the designation with Southwark Council before any scheme is recommended.
Building control applies regardless of the planning route. Expect a protected stairwell to a final exit with fire doors and interlinked alarms, Part K compliant stairs, a new floor on engineer-sized joists carried by steels bearing on padstones, and insulation and ventilation detailed for Part L without trapping moisture in the roof. Party wall notice is needed wherever the steels bear into a shared wall, and the legal duty to serve it rests with you as the building owner.
- Insulation between and over rafters to Part L
- Ventilation paths kept clear at eaves and ridge
- Rear dormers to win full head height across the new floor
- Rooflight conversions where the roof line must not change
- Hip to gable conversions on semi-detached and end terrace roofs
The GS Renovation Difference in Southwark
Southwark owners choose GS Renovation because the borough runs from Georgian terraces to riverside warehouses and needs a contractor who checks rather than assumes. We coordinate the engineer and any architect, install steels and floor structure correctly, prepare your party wall detail and manage Southwark building control to certificate. Fully insured, with a dedicated project manager and 30+ years of founder experience.
- Roof made good, leadwork and guttering finished properly
- Registered in England, Companies House no. 14611254
- Honest answer at survey if your roof will not take a conversion
- New floor structure carried on steel, never on the old ceiling joists
- Paperwork and certificates handed over for when you sell
- Our own trades on site rather than a chain of subcontractors