What are building regulation drawings?

People often assume that once they have planning permission they're ready to build. Not quite. Planning is about what the building looks like and whether it's acceptable in that spot. Building regulations are about how it's built, and you need a separate approval for that.

What's in a set of building regs drawings

They're a lot more detailed than planning drawings. A typical set for an extension or loft conversion will have plans, sections and elevations, plus notes and specifications covering:

• foundations and the structural details, backed up by structural calculations
• steel beam sizes and how they're supported
• how the walls, floor and roof are built up, including insulation
• fire safety and escape routes
• ventilation, drainage, stairs and windows

Building control checks these against the Approved Documents. The ones that come up most on houses are Part A (structure), Part B (fire), Part L (energy) and Part F (ventilation).

Full Plans or Building Notice?

With a Full Plans application, building control approves the drawings before work starts. With a Building Notice you can start sooner, but nothing has been checked in advance, so any problems get picked up on site. For anything structural we'd nearly always go with Full Plans.

Why it's worth doing properly

Good drawings mean builders are all pricing the same job, and there are fewer surprises once work starts. Because our architects and engineers work together, the structure is sorted out at the drawing stage rather than on site.

If you need building regs drawings or structural calculations, send us a message.