Construction & Building Works in Eastbourne

Construction & Building Works

Extensions, loft and garage conversions, structural work and new builds, with the engineering, the approvals and the finishing all handled by one firm.

Gas Safe registered, FMB members and family-run in Eastbourne.

What our building work covers

This is the larger, structural end of what we do: extensions, loft and garage conversions, new builds, removing walls and fitting beams, repairing structural cracks and failed lintels, replacing corroded wall ties, brickwork and repointing, and the groundwork and boundaries around a building.

What these jobs have in common is that they need designing, approving and evidencing rather than simply building. Structural work has to be calculated by an engineer, built to those calculations and signed off by building control, and the completion certificate matters years later when you come to sell.

We take that side on as well as the building. We check what your address allows, arrange the structural engineer, submit to building control, book the inspections at the right stages, and serve party wall notices where they are needed.

And we finish the inside. You get usable, decorated rooms rather than a shell and a list of other trades to find, because the same team does the plastering, joinery, electrics, plumbing and decoration.

What decides the cost of a building job

Rarely the brickwork. On an extension it is what is under the ground: shrinkable clay, made up ground, a high water table or a large tree nearby all mean deeper or engineered foundations, and that is decided before anything is above ground level.

Then drainage. A public sewer or a manhole where you want to build means a build over agreement and sometimes a diversion. Then how much glass, because bifolds and roof lanterns cost far more per metre than wall and need support above them.

On a loft conversion it is head height and roof structure. A traditional cut roof is straightforward. A modern trussed roof has to be restructured with steels before the trusses can be altered at all.

And access. A rear garden reachable only through the house changes how materials and muck move, and that costs time on every single day of the job.

How we run larger jobs

We start with what you want the building to do and what the site allows, and we will tell you if there is a cheaper way to get there. Converting a garage or reworking a layout often gets most of the benefit for a fraction of an extension.

We handle the approvals rather than leaving them with you: permitted development checks, planning applications where needed, structural calculations, building control and party wall notices.

Then we build it with our own trades in sequence, with one point of contact, a written programme and an itemised price. If the ground throws up something unexpected we show you and agree it before carrying on.

Payments are against completed stages, and at the end we walk round with you, write down anything that needs attention and come back and finish it.

Extensions

Single and two storey, side and rear, wrap arounds and conservatory replacements, taken through drawings, approvals, groundwork, structure and internal fit out. See extensions.

Loft conversions

Bedrooms, offices and shower rooms in the roof, with the head height and roof structure checked honestly before you spend anything on drawings. See loft conversions.

Garage conversions

The cheapest way to gain a usable room in most houses, built to current regulations so it does not end up the cold room in the house. See garage conversions.

New builds

One off houses, replacement dwellings, annexes and garden rooms taken on as main contractor, working to your architect and engineer’s drawings. See new builds.

Structural works

Removing walls, fitting beams, replacing failed lintels, supporting removed chimney breasts and repairing cracked masonry, designed by an engineer and signed off. See structural works.

Cavity wall tie replacement

Diagnosing and replacing corroded ties, a common defect on coastal properties built between the 1920s and 1980s, with a written report for lenders. See cavity wall tie replacement.

Brickwork and repointing

Repointing in mortar matched to the wall, brick replacement, crack repair and new masonry in brick, flint and stone. See brickwork and repointing.

Fencing and landscaping

Fences, gates, patios, paving, retaining walls and drainage, built on the groundwork that actually keeps them level and standing. See fencing and landscaping.

Approvals, and which ones your job needs

This is the part people find most confusing, so here is the short version. We check all of it for your specific address before you spend money on drawings.

Permitted development. Many extensions, loft conversions and garage conversions need no planning application, subject to limits on size, height and boundaries. Rights are reduced on flats, listed buildings and in conservation areas.
Planning permission. Needed where you exceed those limits, or where rights have been removed by a condition, which happens on some newer estates.
Building regulations. Always required for structural work, new circuits, drainage changes, insulation and anything affecting fire escape, regardless of planning.
Structural calculations. Any beam or altered load path needs an engineer’s design, which building control will ask for.
Party wall notices. Required for building on or near a boundary, cutting into a shared wall or excavating near a neighbour’s foundations.
Build over agreements. Needed where you build over or close to a public sewer.

The completion certificate at the end is what a buyer’s solicitor will ask for, so it is worth having even on work nobody will ever see.

Building on East Sussex sites

Plot shape and ground conditions decide a great deal here. The Victorian and Edwardian terraces and semis in Eastbourne, Hastings and Bexhill usually have a long narrow garden and an existing rear addition, so a rear extension that squares off the back of the house is the common answer.

Nineteen thirties semis in Willingdon, Polegate and Hampden Park tend to have wider plots, a side gap and a hipped roof with good loft height, which makes side extensions and hip to gable loft conversions straightforward. They are also squarely in the age range for corroded wall ties.

Post war and newer houses towards Stone Cross and Hailsham have generous plots and attached garages, so garage conversions and single storey rear extensions give the most extra room for the money.

Ground varies too. Parts of the coastal strip have made up ground, while inland towards Hailsham, Heathfield and the levels there is heavy clay and some high water tables, all of which affect foundation design. Coastal exposure also changes specification for roofs, flashings and render.

Questions we get asked

Do I need planning permission?

Not always. Many extensions, loft conversions and garage conversions fall under permitted development, subject to limits on size, height and how close you build to a boundary. Rights are reduced or removed on flats, listed buildings, in conservation areas and where a planning condition has removed them. We check your specific address and tell you before you spend money on drawings.

Do I need a structural engineer?

For anything that removes or alters load bearing structure, yes, and building control will require the calculations. We arrange the engineer as part of the job rather than sending you off to find one.

Do I need an architect?

For a straightforward extension or conversion we can often work from a measured survey and handle the technical drawings and approvals ourselves. For anything larger, anything needing planning permission, or where the design matters a great deal to you, an architect is worth the money and we work alongside yours.

How long do larger building jobs take?

A garage conversion is commonly four to eight weeks, a loft conversion eight to sixteen, a single storey extension twelve to twenty, and a one off house nine to eighteen months. Add time beforehand for drawings, engineering and any planning application, which frequently takes longer than the build.

Can I stay in the house during the work?

Usually yes for extensions, loft and garage conversions, because most of the work happens outside or above the existing rooms. The disruptive points are the groundwork and the moment the opening is made into the house, and we tell you which weeks those are.

What is a party wall agreement?

Where you build on or close to a boundary, cut into a shared wall or excavate near a neighbour’s foundations, the Party Wall Act requires notice to be served. If the neighbour does not consent, surveyors prepare an award. It protects both sides, and we tell you at survey whether your job needs it and how it affects the start date.

Will building work add value?

Usually, though not always by more than it cost, and it depends on the street rather than the work. Adding a bathroom, a usable bedroom or a decent kitchen and dining room tends to pay back well. We are builders rather than valuers, so ask a local agent what your street supports before committing to something large.

Is there a cheaper way to get an extra room?

Often. A garage conversion is usually the cheapest, because there are no foundations, walls or roof to pay for. A loft conversion comes next where head height allows. A new extension gives the most freedom and costs the most per room. We will tell you honestly which your property suits.

Where we work

We are based on Hyde Gardens in Eastbourne, so the town and the villages around it are home ground for us. We are out working here most days and we know the housing well, including the older seafront terraces, the Victorian and Edwardian houses in Upperton and Meads, and the newer estates and blocks of flats nearer the edge of town.

From Eastbourne we cover the whole of East Sussex. Along the coast that takes in Bexhill, Hastings, Seaford, Newhaven, Brighton, where salt air and driving rain are hard on any building. Inland we work regularly in Polegate, Hailsham, Pevensey, Willingdon, Lewes, Uckfield, Heathfield, Crowborough, Battle and the smaller villages between them, where period cottages and country properties often need a gentler approach and older materials matched carefully.

Being local matters for extensions and building work. We can get to you quickly to take a look, we know the buildings and the ground conditions, and we are never far away if you need us again. If your village is not on the list there is a good chance we still reach you, so give us a call on 01323 671001 and we will tell you either way.

Backed by recognised standards

We are Gas Safe registered and members of the Federation of Master Builders, NAPIT and the FSB. Those memberships mean our gas, electrical and building work is measured against recognised standards, and that an outside body has looked at how we work rather than us simply saying we are good at it. For a family business our reputation matters more than anything, and we have built it one customer at a time.