Building work in New Malden: area guide
Every trade under one contract across New Malden and KT3. Structural work, extensions, kitchens and bathrooms, building control handled for you.
This is our area guide to building work in New Malden (KT3, Kingston upon Thames): the housing, the council rules that apply (Kingston Council for planning) and every service we offer here. For whole-house refurbishment go to Home renovation in New Malden.
Look along a New Malden street and the rooflines tell you how the houses were built. The 1930s semis spreading out from the High Street and towards Beverley Park were built with cut roofs, purlins carried on struts, and hips that lose useful volume at the side. Read that structure correctly and you know which internal walls carry roof load before any of them is opened, because those struts often land on a wall that looks like a partition. GS Renovation carries out the rear extensions and structural openings these houses usually need across KT3, taking building control through to the completion certificate.
New Malden counts roughly 7,070 homes for Council Tax; 33% are older than 1919, 33% interwar and 34% post-war, with 31% flats and 69% houses. VOA Council Tax stock of properties, March 2025, for New Malden East and New Malden West. Counts rounded by the VOA.
Rear extensions, what runs beneath them, then the steel
A rear house extension here is more predictable than in older stock. Regular spans, cavity walls and a consistent original plan mean beam sizes and bearing arrangements tend to come back sensibly from the engineer, and the geometry of the existing rear addition sets most of the design. The new opening in the cavity wall is an RSJ installation that also needs the cavity closed and a tray with stop ends above it, so water crossing the outer leaf is discharged outwards. Where the new build abuts an original flat roofed addition, the junction detailing decides whether it stays dry.
Below ground is where the surprises live. The existing drainage run and any inspection chamber in the path of the new foundations are located before design, not discovered by an excavator, and building over or near a public sewer brings its own approval process. Surface water from the additional roof area needs somewhere to go, and where the ground allows a soakaway, its position and size are worked out rather than guessed. Building control inspects the open trench before concrete is placed, and we book that visit into the programme so the groundworkers are not left standing about waiting for it.
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Every Service We Offer in New Malden
One accountable team for every trade in New Malden. Starting figures are indicative London ranges from published 2026 cost guides, not a quotation. Each service page itemises the figures and names the sources.
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FAQ
Building work in New Malden: common questions
Who arranges the building control approval?
We do, as part of the job. We submit the application, register the notifiable work, book each inspection at the defined stage, meet the inspector on site and hand you the completion certificate at the end. On a New Malden extension with a new rear opening that typically covers foundations, drainage, structural steel, insulation, fire safety and completion. Keeping those records together matters when the house is sold.
Is the wall between my two reception rooms load bearing?
Usually yes in a New Malden semi. It generally carries the first floor joists, and in a cut roof the struts from the purlins can land on the wall above it, adding roof load. The structural engineer we appoint checks the loft and the joist direction before sizing the beam, and building control inspects the steel and its bearings before they are covered.
Does a rear extension in New Malden need planning permission?
Not always. On a semi-detached or terraced house a single storey rear extension of up to three metres, or four on a detached house, is commonly permitted development, with deeper additions possible through prior approval. Earlier additions count against the allowance, flats have no such rights, and a conservation area or Article 4 direction narrows them, so we confirm the position with Kingston Council before drawings are finalised.
Do trees near the house affect the foundations?
They can, where the ground is clay. Trees draw moisture from clay and make it shrink and swell with the seasons, so a foundation near a mature tree is taken deeper than a standard trench. The structural engineer sets the depth from trial holes, the species and the distance, and building control inspects the open trench before concrete is poured.
George was brilliant. Lovely bloke, very reasonably priced and a perfectionist to boot. He completed our small kitchen renovation with care and great attention to detail. I've already recommended him to others.
George always kept to commitments and arrived on time. He offered helpful suggestions during his initial visit and promptly provided a reasonably priced quote. The work started on time and George worked really hard every day. There were…
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, fittings, appliances, installations. We are tenants and the landlord initially thought that to fit…
Planning Building Work in New Malden?
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