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Georgian brick terrace with sash windows, arched fanlight doorways, stone steps and iron railings in London
Photograph: Lorenc Memaga

01Areas we cover

Architectural drawings for Chelsea's stucco and stock-brick terraces

The Chelsea Conservation Area was built largely as modest terraces of stock brick and stucco, and the council reads every alteration against that grain. We prepare planning, listed building consent and Building Regulations drawings for Chelsea houses that show what the officer wants to see: the original joinery, the parapet and the garden left intact.

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    02The record

    Chelsea on the record

    Figures with their unit, period and source
    MeasureValuePeriodSource
    Conservation areaChelseadesignated 1971-01-01rbkc.gov.uk
    Local factThe Chelsea Conservation Area Appraisal was adopted on 4 January 2016.No periodrbkc.gov.uk
    Local factIts terraces are mainly yellow stock brick with stucco decoration and timber sliding sash windows, as in Sydney Street, Markham Square and Halsey Street.No periodplanningconsult.rbkc.gov.uk
    Local factCheyne Conservation Area Appraisal (adopted 30 January 2017)adoptedplanningconsult.rbkc.gov.uk
    Local factReplacement uPVC and aluminium windows ignore original joinery profiles and glazing bars and are described as harmful.No periodplanningconsult.rbkc.gov.uk
    Local planning considerationAn Article 4 direction covering the whole Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea removes permitted development rights for basement extensions to single dwelling houses; it came into force on 28 April 2016.No periodrbkc.gov.uk
    Local planning considerationRBKC's New Local Plan Review (July 2024), Policy CD11, requires basements not to exceed 50% of each garden or open part of the site and not to comprise more than one storey, with exceptions for large sites.No periodrbkc.gov.uk
    Conservation areas39 named conservation areas published by the councilNo periodplanning.data.gov.uk
    Article 4 directions84 Article 4 directions published by the councilNo periodplanning.data.gov.uk
    Listed building entries1,350 list entries (Historic England, within the LPA boundary)No periodplanning.data.gov.uk

    A blank value means the figure has not been published, not that there are none. Check your own address with the council.

    Chelsea6 conservation areas
    Conservation areas named for Chelsea
    • Chelsea: designated 1 January 1971
    • Cheyne: designated 1 January 1969
    • Royal Hospital: designated 1 January 1969
    • Chelsea Park/Carlyle: designated 1 January 1971
    • Sloane Square: designated 1 January 1971
    • Chelsea Estates: designated 1 January 2019
    Rows of brick terraced houses and gardens on a residential street
    Photograph: Altaf Shah

    03The drawing

    Constraints check: Kensington and ChelseaA, Conservation areas: 39 named conservation areas published by the council. B, Article 4 directions: 84 Article 4 directions published by the council. C, Listed building entries: 1,350 list entries (Historic England, within the LPA boundary). D, Heritage at Risk entries: 43 Heritage at Risk Register entries within the LPA boundary (Historic England)39Conservation areasA84Article 4 directionsB1,350Listed building entriesC43Heritage at Risk entriesD

    Constraints check: Kensington and Chelsea

    What we check first on any address in Kensington and Chelsea. Counts are for the whole council area.

    A Conservation areas
    39 named conservation areas published by the council
    B Article 4 directions
    84 Article 4 directions published by the council
    C Listed building entries
    1,350 list entries (Historic England, within the LPA boundary)
    D Heritage at Risk entries
    43 Heritage at Risk Register entries within the LPA boundary (Historic England)
    A period street in three dimensions3D
    Scroll the page: the model turns with it.

    04The brief

    Stock brick, stucco and sliding sashes

    The Chelsea Conservation Area consists of generally modest residential terraces between Fulham Road and the King's Road, mostly laid out from the early 19th century to the 1950s. Its terraces are mainly yellow stock brick with stucco decoration and timber sliding sash windows, as in Sydney Street, Markham Square and Halsey Street.

    That palette explains the rules that follow. A change to a window, a parapet or a front railing alters the thing the council is protecting, so our existing-elevation sheets record the pattern of each before a proposal is drawn.

    Red-brick mansion blocks and shopfronts on a street corner

    05The detail

    Six conservation areas cover Chelsea

    The Royal Borough lists 39 conservation areas, and six of them cover Chelsea: Chelsea, Cheyne, Royal Hospital, Chelsea Park/Carlyle, Sloane Square and Chelsea Estates. The Chelsea Conservation Area Appraisal was adopted on 4 January 2016.

    Several have their own adopted appraisal, among them the Cheyne Conservation Area Appraisal (adopted 30 January 2017), the Chelsea Park Carlyle Conservation Area Appraisal (adopted 19 June 2017) and the Chelsea Estates Conservation Area Appraisal (adopted 6 June 2019). We identify yours from the address and read it before the first sketch.

    What the appraisals call harmful

    On windows: Replacement uPVC and aluminium windows ignore original joinery profiles and glazing bars and are described as harmful. On railings: Railings emphasise the unity of a building group without masking it; patterns vary within terraces.

    On roofs the language is just as direct. An out-of-character roof extension to a house wing is cited as harming the group and the street. Our mansard roof drawings page explains how we judge whether a terrace has room for a storey at all.

    Basements under Chelsea gardens

    An Article 4 direction covering the whole Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea removes permitted development rights for basement extensions to single dwelling houses; it came into force on 28 April 2016. The Royal Borough's local plan adds a size limit: RBKC's New Local Plan Review (July 2024), Policy CD11, requires basements not to exceed 50% of each garden or open part of the site and not to comprise more than one storey, with exceptions for large sites.

    The appraisals also record a side effect. New basement levels have brought unsympathetic rooflights; the appraisal lists this as harm to the area. We draw rooflights over a basement with that warning in mind. See basement conversion drawings for how the garden arithmetic works.

    Listed houses and the borough record

    The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea records 1,350 list entries, 18 at Grade I and 116 at Grade II*, and 43 entries sit on the Heritage at Risk Register. For a listed Chelsea house, read listed building consent drawings in Kensington and Chelsea. The Kensington guide and the Holland Park guide cover the neighbouring districts.

    Planning sheet for a single-storey rear extension: proposed ground floor plan and rear elevation, with the Property Architecture title block
    Sample drawing. Proposed plan and rear elevation from a planning application set, sheet 03 at 1:50.

    06The papers

    What the drawings rest on

    Rear view of brick terraced houses in London with slate roofs and chimney stacks along the shared rooflineParty wall services
    Photograph: Ben Hadfield
    Building regulations section through a rear extension, with the roof, floor, wall and foundation build-ups labelled
    Sample drawing. Section A-A with the build-ups building control checks, sheet 07 at 1:50.

    07Correspondence

    Questions

    Which Chelsea conservation area is my house in?

    Chelsea is split between several areas: Chelsea, Cheyne, Royal Hospital, Chelsea Park/Carlyle, Sloane Square and Chelsea Estates. Send us the address and we confirm which appraisal governs it.

    Can I fit uPVC or aluminium windows to a Chelsea terrace?

    The Chelsea appraisal's line is plain: Replacement uPVC and aluminium windows ignore original joinery profiles and glazing bars and are described as harmful. Like-for-like timber joinery drawn to the original pattern is the safer route, and we check the Article 4 position for your street.

    Does the borough's basement direction apply in Chelsea?

    Yes. An Article 4 direction covering the whole Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea removes permitted development rights for basement extensions to single dwelling houses; it came into force on 28 April 2016. We draw the scheme within the local plan's limit on extent and depth, which is quoted in the basement section above.

    What does a basement under a Chelsea garden cost to draw?

    From £1,995 including VAT, with the engineer's calculations coordinated alongside. Because the borough caps how much of the garden a basement may take, the first job is measuring what is left, and that sets the number of sheets. The council's fee is separate.

    Upper floors of a large yellow-brick Victorian house in London with chimney pots

    39

    named conservation areas published by the council

    Conservation areas, Kensington and Chelsea. Source: planning.data.gov.uk

    Photograph: Lorenc Memaga

    08Further reading

    Nearby neighbourhoods

    09Sources

    Sources and dates

    Licences

    Kensington street lined with brick townhouses and lit streetlamps beneath an orange dusk sky

    Send us the address of your house.

    We look up the conservation area, listing and Article 4 position, then reply with a fixed fee. A message before 3pm is answered the same working day.

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    Architectural drawings in Chelsea for period terraces