Call 020 7864 7245Request a fixed quote
Bright finished basement room with a glass-balustrade staircase, high windows and a built-in desk
Photograph: Point3D Commercial Imaging Ltd.

01Wandsworth, London

Basement conversion drawings in Wandsworth

Wandsworth's Local Plan puts hard figures on a basement: how many storeys, how much garden, how deep the soil above must be and how big the front lightwell may be. We draw to each, so the application shows the numbers the officer will check.

From £1,995 (VAT included)

  • MCIAT chartered architectural technologists
  • £2m professional indemnity insurance
  • LABC Partnered
  • ICO registered

Fixed fee, VAT included

Ask for a fixed fee

Photographs or current plans (optional)

Drag files here or browse your device

Up to 10 files, 90 MB in total: PDF, JPG, PNG or DWG

    Write to us before 3pm and we reply the same working day. Redraws are free until approval.

    02The brief

    Depth and garden share

    The Local Plan's basement policy opens with two limits, shown on the schedule as 1 storey; 50%. A basement may be no more than one storey below ground and, for homes, no more than half of the existing rear garden or undeveloped garden area.

    Gardens are not equal here: domestic gardens cover 21.5% of the borough's land, and only 31.4% of households live in a house or bungalow. We measure your garden before designing so that the half-share is calculated on real figures. The basement conversion drawings hub sets out the wider route.

    Georgian brick terrace with sash windows, arched fanlight doorways, stone steps and iron railings in London
    Rear view of brick terraced houses in London with slate roofs and chimney stacks along the shared roofline
    Photograph: Ben Hadfield

    03The record

    Local figures for Wandsworth

    Figures with their unit, period and source
    MeasureValuePeriodSource
    Basements may be no more than one storey below ground and, for homes, cover no more than 50% of the existing rear garden or undeveloped garden area.1 storey; 50%No periodwandsworth.gov.uk, Local Plan 2023, Policy LP6, p.294, LP6 A1-A2
    Front lightwells must keep at least 50% of the original front garden depth, and in conservation areas at least two metres or 50%, whichever is greater.50% / 2 mNo periodwandsworth.gov.uk, Local Plan 2023, Policy LP6, p.294, LP6 A3
    Basements need at least 1 metre of naturally draining soil plus a 200mm drainage layer above any part under a garden, and a positive pumped device against sewer flooding.1 m soil + 200 mmNo periodwandsworth.gov.uk, Local Plan 2023, Policy LP6, p.294, LP6 A5 and A8
    Party Wall etc. Act 1996 s6(1), s6(2), s6(5)Adjacent excavation notice at least 1 month before work: within 3 m and deeper than the neighbour's foundations, or within 6 m and cutting a 45° line from their foundationsNo periodlegislation.gov.uk
    Approved Document B Vol 1, para 2.16Basement storeys with habitable rooms need an escape window or external door, or a protected stair to a final exitNo periodgov.uk
    Approved Document B Vol 1, paras 1.1-1.2All dwellings: fire detection and alarm system minimum Grade D2 Category LD3 (BS 5839-6), mains-operated smoke alarms to BS EN 14604No periodgov.uk
    Domestic gardens share of land (GLUD 2005)21.5 % of land that is domestic garden (GLUD 2005)2005data.london.gov.uk
    Conservation areas46 named conservation areas published by the councilNo periodplanning.data.gov.uk
    Listed building entries312 list entries (Historic England, within the LPA boundary)No periodplanning.data.gov.uk
    Householder applications granted91.9 %1 July 2025 - 30 June 2026assets.publishing.service.gov.uk

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

    Wandsworth7 neighbouring councils
    Councils bordering Wandsworth

    04The streets

    Householder applications by street in Wandsworth

    Streets in Wandsworth with the most householder applications, and the share approved
    StreetApplicationsApproved
    Earlsfield Road2889%
    Dover House Road2774%
    Broomwood Road2692%
    Sutherland Grove2682%
    Elborough Street2592%
    Elsenham Street2591%
    Elsley Road24100%
    Wakehurst Road2490%
    Deodar Road2289%
    Huntingfield Road2291%
    Mallinson Road2291%
    Thurleigh Road22100%
    Engadine Street21100%
    Magdalen Road2180%
    Burntwood Lane2089%

    Counts of householder applications by street; no individual applications are shown. Streets with fewer than five applications are left out.

    GLA Planning London Datahub, householder applications

    05The drawing

    A basement in sectionA, Wandsworth: depth and garden share: 1 storey; 50%. B, Wandsworth: excavation depth: 50% / 2 m. C, Wandsworth: soil over the basement: 1 m soil + 200 mm. D, Party wall notice for excavation: Adjacent excavation notice at least 1 month before work: within 3 m and deeper than the neighbour's foundations, or within 6 m and cutting a 45° line from their foundations. E, Escape from basement rooms: Basement storeys with habitable rooms need an escape window or external door, or a protected stair to a final exitABCDE

    A basement in section

    A house and garden over a single-storey basement. The lettered marks show the limits the legend gives.

    A Wandsworth: depth and garden share
    1 storey; 50%
    B Wandsworth: excavation depth
    50% / 2 m
    C Wandsworth: soil over the basement
    1 m soil + 200 mm
    D Party wall notice for excavation
    Adjacent excavation notice at least 1 month before work: within 3 m and deeper than the neighbour's foundations, or within 6 m and cutting a 45° line from their foundations
    E Escape from basement rooms
    Basement storeys with habitable rooms need an escape window or external door, or a protected stair to a final exit
    The basement in three dimensions3D
    Scroll the page: the model turns with it.

    06The detail

    The front lightwell in a conservation area

    Front lightwells must keep at least half of the original front garden depth, and in a conservation area at least two metres or half, whichever is greater. The council's schedule shows it as 50% / 2 m. That protects the front garden of a period terrace, and the borough has 46 conservation areas where it applies in its stricter form.

    The council also publishes Basement extensions guidance (non-statutory), alongside the Housing SPD, which covers basements with roof extensions and loft conversions; we read both for a scheme.

    Soil depth and sewer flooding

    Under any part of a garden the policy asks for naturally draining soil with a drainage layer on top, shown as 1 m soil + 200 mm, plus a positive pumped device against sewer flooding. That means the structural depth is set by the soil above, not only by the room below it, so the structural engineer and the drawings need to agree early; our structural calculations start at £295.

    Basement storeys with habitable rooms need an escape window or external door, or a protected stair to a final exit. All dwellings: fire detection and alarm system minimum Grade D2 Category LD3 (BS 5839-6), mains-operated smoke alarms to BS EN 14604.

    Neighbours, heritage and fees

    Adjacent excavation notice at least 1 month before work: within 3 m and deeper than the neighbour's foundations, or within 6 m and cutting a 45° line from their foundations. Our notice fee is £45 per adjoining owner. With 312 list entries in the borough, a listed house needs consent for a cellar too: see listed building consent drawings in Wandsworth. A roof extension at the same address is covered under mansard roof drawings in Wandsworth.

    Wandsworth's latest returns show 977 householder decisions, 91.9% of them grants; that is a borough-wide record, not a forecast for a cellar. Our fixed fee for basement drawings starts at £1,995 including VAT.

    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.

    07The papers

    What the drawings rest on

    Brick house being extended, with a wide new opening supported over the ground floorStructural calculations
    Photograph: Brett Jordan
    Structural calculation sheet for a steel beam over a new rear opening, with the load diagram, loading table and section checks
    Sample drawing. Beam B1 over a new rear opening: loading, bending moment and section checks.

    08Correspondence

    Questions

    How much of my garden can a basement take in Wandsworth?

    For homes the Local Plan allows no more than half of the existing rear garden or undeveloped garden area, and one storey below ground. The schedule shows it as 1 storey; 50%.

    How big can a front lightwell be?

    It must leave at least half the original front garden depth, and in a conservation area at least two metres or half, whichever is greater.

    What soil depth does the council want above a basement?

    The Local Plan asks for 1 m soil + 200 mm above any part under a garden, plus a pumped device against sewer flooding.

    Rows of brick terraced houses and gardens on a residential street

    91.9%

    Householder applications granted, Wandsworth, 1 July 2025 - 30 June 2026. Source: assets.publishing.service.gov.uk

    Photograph: Altaf Shah

    09Further reading

    Other services in Wandsworth

    Basement conversion drawings nearby

    10Sources

    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.

    Ask for a fixed feeCall 020 7864 7245WhatsApp
    Basement conversion drawings in Wandsworth