Planning your ideal place, be it a family classic home, a contemporary apartment block, or a futuristic commercial outlet, is not only a matter of beauty. It is functional, permissional, time limit, budgetary and visioning. The central figure of this process is your architect: the human being that can transform your way of living, dreams, and ideals into spaced bricks, glass and iron. The process of making the right choice of the right team to hire can be too much to handle in one of the most architecturally diverse cities in the world. This is why the step-by-step guide below will assist you in finding the way of hiring and collaborating with the greatest architecture firms in London.
London is a living breathing city that traces back to Victorian houses with their homes and shops to the new constructions that are breaking ground. To select the appropriate firm, there is also a need to choose an individual who comprehends not only your vision, but also the regulatory nightmare, the legacy and design potential London possesses.
A Homeowner’s Guide to Working with Architecture Firms in London
There are hundreds of architecture practices in London each with their own way of doing things, areas of specialisation and size of projects undertaken. If you intend to extend the back of your house in Hackney, to build a new house in Hampstead or to convert an old apartment in Kensington, your project can be assisted with the best architecture firms in London.
However, it is always better to clarify the goal you have before opening Pinterest boards or Instagram feeds. Are you seeking a one stop solution architecture firm that can do all the work including planning permissions and final finishings? Or are you simply wanting planning drawings? By defining what your task is, what you can spend and what is your schedule you will be able to separate the noise and find out the companies that are likely to aid you the best.
The experience that should be sought when choosing an architecture firm should relate to your brief. In case you have a listed building or a project in a conservation area, then the firm must have a good knowledge of planning and experience of successive approvals. If you care about sustainability, consider only those architects who have specialised in an eco-friendly design or deal with passive houses.
Notably, go by your intuition on the initial consultation. This does not mean that a skilled architect will only present beautiful designs, he or she will ask intelligent questions, shed light on assumptions and present some ideas you never even imagined.
What Services Do Architecture Firms Typically Offer?
The majority of the architecture firms in London provide such a flexible range of services that depend on the scale of the project and its complexity. These services are usually conducted in accordance with the RIBA (Royal Institute of British architects) Plan of Work that divides a project into separate phases, starting with initial briefing and finishing with construction and handover.
The simple breakdown of the typical services is:
Feasibility Studies: To establish whether what you want is feasible, a number of companies will carry out a feasibility study on site, budget and planning limitations.
Concept Design: This is where your imaginations take place. To find the layout, form and spatial possibilities, the architect develops some rough sketches or electronic sketches.
Planning Application Support: An essential part of the process in London where lots of projects, particularly in the boroughs such as Westminster, Camden or Richmond, demand an acute sensitivity to planning policy and the need to liaise with local planning.
Technical Drawings: At the point when approval has been achieved the firm prepares detailed technical drawings upon which builders base their quotation and implementation of the project.
Tenders Management & Contractor Liaison: Other companies will assist you and select the correct builders and quote compare so that you are not simply buying the builder with the lowest bid but actually the right builder.
Finding the Right Firm for Residential vs Commercial Projects
There are mindset differences between residential and commercial buildings and skills needed in order to design buildings. The construction of both is not in every architecture firm in London.
As a house owner, you must seek a company that can learn how to maximise space for family use, light, storage and circulation of life. There is a tendency that residential architects are really good in everyday communication with the clients and designing spaces that convey sensations and emotions that can be seen as personal and comfortable and sustainable. They will know what it is like to live in a London property; what strange corners the Victorian terrace or damp basement has, and they will work around those situations with poise.
Efficiency, branding, user experience and adhering to a plethora of regulatory standards may, in turn, be among the priorities of commercial projects. The retail space in Soho or office fit out in Shoreditch, applied commercial architects are familiar with work place ergonomics, building fire regulatory codes and large scale logistics. There are various companies specialising in either one or another; do not fail to pick the appropriate one.
In both situations, check out the portfolio of the firm. Request you to see one of their constructed projects. Talk to your former clients. Transparency and involving the clients of the reputable firms will be appreciated in London which is a competitive city.
Understanding London’s Planning Landscape and Design Styles
As an employee of architecture practices in the city of London, one is likely to find himself or herself in the crudest planning environment in the UK. Each borough possesses a related bunch of planning policies, areas of conservation as well as restrictions. Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea to Newham, one postcode can allow something the other one may reject.
The best thing you can find in this case is a local architect of some knowledge. They will not only get to know what can be done on paper but they will get to understand the ins and outs of the attitude of various councils. More to the point, they will learn how to anticipate the issues, develop powerful planning arguments, and deal with the case officers.
London is contrasting in sense of design. You will be able to see Edwardian houses with glass-box added on, Brutalist blocks converted to trendy apartments. The best architectural practices in London are technically only proficient but are as well visually flexible. They are able to plan in harmony, contrast or innovation as per your brief.
Why Many Clients Choose Extension Architecture for Local Projects
The arsenal of architecture firms in London is quite numerous, but Extension Architecture has been able to gain a firm following since it has been able to use its design expertise coupled with planning success. They have experience of more than 1500 approved planning applications and 10 years of experience in the business, they know the pulse of the London property.
This is what can distinguish Extension Architecture among other architecture:
All-in-One Service: Serious about one stop service- our feasibility studies, planning drawings and building control packages, interior design, and not to forget project management, are all under one roof. The combination helps simplify the process of communication, lowers expenses and quickens the pace of motion.
Client-Centric Design: They do not only design homes, they design people. Being a growing family, an investor, or a business they concentrate on your particular aims and design every project to suit your targets.
Track Record: Across London Extension Architecture has gained consents in the most difficult of conservation areas, listed buildings and high density environments.
3D Visualisation & VR: Our clients have a chance to see how their future will look like in an awesome 3D or, literally, even in VR world and feel that the design process is really creative and fun.