Building work in Enfield: area guide
Kitchens, bathrooms, structural work and extensions across Enfield, led by a founder with 30+ years' hands-on experience.
Enfield Council is the planning and building control authority for Enfield, which covers EN1, EN2, EN3, EN4, N9, N13, N14, N18 and N21 and takes in Edmonton, Palmers Green, Southgate, Oakwood, Winchmore Hill, Hadley Wood and Cockfosters. This is our area guide to building work in the borough; for whole-house refurbishment go to Home renovation in Enfield.
Count the homes in Enfield and you get about 128,360: 41% built since 1945, 35% between the wars and 23% before 1919, with flats at 41% and houses at 59%. VOA Council Tax stock of properties, March 2025, for all 36 statistical areas in Enfield. Counts rounded by the VOA.
Planning and building control in Enfield
What Enfield Council publishes about building work in the borough, with each point linked to the council page it comes from:
- Planning Data gives the Trent Park conservation area in Enfield a designation date of 1973. planning.data.gov.uk
- Planning Data records a borough-wide Enfield Article 4 direction relating to houses in multiple occupation, with permitted development rights removed. planning.data.gov.uk
- Planning Data records the Trent Park Conservation Area as covered by the Enfield Borough Conservation Areas Article 4(2) Direction 2006. planning.data.gov.uk
- Planning Data records The Enfield Plan: Core Strategy 2010-2025 as an Enfield local plan with a start date of 10 November 2010. planning.data.gov.uk
59% of Enfield's homes are houses, which keep householder permitted development: a single-storey rear extension within the size limits can usually go ahead without an application, in a conservation area too unless an Article 4 direction removes it. The 41% that are flats have no householder permitted development, so their extensions and most external changes need planning permission from Enfield Council. Check Enfield Council's conservation area and Article 4 lists for the street before anything is drawn. Taking out a wall or a chimney breast is building regulations work, not planning, unless the building is listed.
Reviewed jobs in Enfield
Our MyBuilder profile holds 6 verified reviews from jobs in Enfield. The job titles are the customers' own, as published:
- Bathroom refurb, Enfield, 7 Mar 2023 (5 out of 5)
- Bathroom PVC cladding + Painting + Lino fitting, Enfield, 20 Dec 2022 (5 out of 5)
- Kitchen worktol, Enfield, 8 Dec 2022 (5 out of 5)
- Shower screen installation, Enfield, 16 Feb 2022 (5 out of 5)
- Replacing integrated fridge freezer, Enfield, 17 Jun 2021 (5 out of 5)
- Fit a new bathroom suite, Lower Edmonton, 19 May 2017 (5 out of 5)
Read every review, including the ones from elsewhere, on our reviews page.
Enfield reaches from Edmonton in the south up to the green belt at the northern edge of London, covering EN1, EN2, EN3, EN4, N9, N13, N14, N18 and N21. Many houses are interwar terraces and semis of the 1920s and 1930s in Southgate, Palmers Green and Winchmore Hill, with older Victorian terraces in Edmonton and around Enfield Town. Plots are generous by London standards, so the first questions are which way to build out and what policy allows, and that is a house extension job.
Green belt edges and larger properties: policy before the build
The northern part of the borough includes substantial areas of green belt, where planning policy is far more restrictive about new buildings and about anything that would disproportionately enlarge the original house. On that edge the position is checked with Enfield Council before a scheme is drawn, because the usual assumptions do not hold.
Enfield Council has also designated conservation areas in the older centres, including parts of Enfield Town and Winchmore Hill, where side, two-storey and roof additions need planning permission. Away from both, the typical interwar question is the spine wall, a load-bearing wall removal job with the steel sized by the engineer first. A skip fits on the drive, materials store securely and rear access avoids carrying anything through the house, so a family can stay in.
Our Services
Every Service We Offer in Enfield
Starting figures are indicative London ranges from published 2026 cost guides, not a quotation. Each service page itemises the figures and names the sources.
Local Areas
Neighbourhoods We Cover in Enfield
About 18,850 homes: 49% flats, 29% built before 1919 and 48% since 1945 (VOA, March 2025).
Planning Data gives the Church Street, Edmonton conservation area a designation date of 1970. Council source
About 7,040 homes: 45% flats, 44% built before 1919 and 20% since 1945 (VOA, March 2025).
About 7,360 homes: 48% flats, 18% built before 1919 and 41% since 1945 (VOA, March 2025).
Planning Data records an Enfield Article 4 direction area covering the Southgate Green Conservation Area under the Enfield Borough Conservation Areas Article 4(1) Direction 2003. Council source
About 3,450 homes: 44% flats, 3% built before 1919 and 52% since 1945 (VOA, March 2025).
About 3,160 homes: 28% flats, 34% built before 1919 and 16% since 1945 (VOA, March 2025).
Planning Data records an Enfield Article 4 direction area covering the Winchmore Hill Conservation Area under the Enfield Borough Conservation Areas Article 4(1) Direction 2003. Council source
About 3,340 homes: 43% flats, 5% built before 1919 and 66% since 1945 (VOA, March 2025).
Planning Data records an Enfield Article 4 direction area covering the Hadley Wood Conservation Area under the Enfield Borough Conservation Areas Article 4(1) Direction 2003. Council source
About 5,950 homes: 35% flats, 8% built before 1919 and 62% since 1945 (VOA, March 2025).
Nearby
Neighbouring Boroughs and Towns
FAQ
Building work in Enfield: common questions
Can I extend a house near the green belt?
It depends on the policy for your site. Green belt policy restricts new building and limits extensions that would disproportionately enlarge the original house, across a substantial area in the north of the borough. Check the position with Enfield Council at the outset, because it shapes what is realistic before any drawing is produced.
Which job is converting an integral garage?
Usually a structural alteration job. It means raising and insulating the floor over a damp proof membrane, insulating walls and roof to Part L, forming a properly supported wall and window where the door was, and ventilation under Part F. Where the garage adjoins the house, fire separation is considered. Building control inspects and certifies this notifiable work.
Do you cover the whole of Enfield?
Yes, from Edmonton and Palmers Green up through Southgate and Winchmore Hill to Enfield Town and the EN3 streets. Our founder Abdelaaziz Saaid has 30+ years on the tools, and we arrange building control on your behalf. Quotations are free and carry no obligation.
George was a great find. The job required re-plastering the walls before fitting acrylic panels. He also re-plumbed the shower waste under the solid floor and then re-tiled the bathroom floor. He had to build a timber frame for a new…
I am very happy to recommend George after he completed the work on my 2 bathrooms. He worked very hard to make sure everything was completed and even came on a Sunday evening to finish the work...which shows how committed he is to…
Really great job done in our bathroom to replace the shower head in the bathtub, and install a shower screen and caddy. We are very happy with the result. The job was done excellently. Communication was really great helping us find what we…
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