GS Renovation creates open-plan living in Kentish Town's Victorian and Edwardian terraces, from double-reception knock-throughs to bright kitchen-diners across the side return. Working in NW5 for over 30 years, we know how these bay-fronted homes with their closet wings are put together, and we open them up with engineer-sized steel and a properly certified result.
Knock-throughs and kitchen-diners in Kentish Town
The classic Kentish Town project is joining the two front-to-back reception rooms into a single open space, or linking the kitchen through the closet wing into a full-width rear kitchen-diner. The dividing wall between the receptions almost always carries load, so it cannot simply be knocked out. A structural engineer sizes an RSJ to span the opening, bearing onto padstones, and we prop, remove and install in safe stages.
Not every wall in these terraces is structural. Later partitions and stud walls, often added when houses were split into converted flats, can come out with only a simple header. We establish early which walls carry load and which do not, so you spend on steel only where it is genuinely needed. Where you want to keep some separation, a Crittall-style glazed divider gives a broken-plan feel without losing light.
Steel, sign-off and neighbours in NW5
Opening up a terrace changes how the house carries its weight, so we work strictly to the engineer's beam schedule: correct sizing, proper padstone bearings, and staged demolition under temporary props before the propping is struck. In an occupied Kentish Town home we sheet floors, protect original features like cornices and ceiling roses, and keep the dust contained while the messy structural phase is under way.
This is Building Regulations work, not a planning matter, so Camden building control inspects the steelwork and issues the completion certificate; planning only applies to exterior changes in a conservation area or on a listed building. Because the reception dividing wall and any flank meet the shared party wall with the neighbour, the Party Wall Act usually applies, and you serve notice before we begin.
- Radiator relocation and underfloor heating in the new layout
- Kitchen island services routed through the new floor
- Ventilation and extraction planned for an open kitchen
- Lighting, heating and electrical reconfiguration
- Zoned lighting circuits and dimming for a multi-use room
Why Choose GS Renovation in Kentish Town
GS Renovation delivers open-plan conversions in Kentish Town as one accountable team. We commission the structural engineer, size and install the steel on proper padstones, serve any arrange Camden building control sign-off. You get honest advice on which walls are load-bearing, tidy working around your family in NW5, and a certified open-plan home, backed by 30+ years.
- The house kept usable while the opening is formed in stages
- A dedicated project manager from first survey to handover
- Founder-led team with 30+ years of hands-on experience
- One point of contact on the phone, not a call centre
- Lighting circuits zoned rather than one pendant in the middle
- Structure and finishes delivered by one team on one programme