Dormer, hip-to-gable and mansard loft conversion drawings for Three Bridges homes — prepared to Crawley Borough Council's design guidance, delivered in days and revised free until your decision lands, with a free approval-odds score first.
Crawley Borough Council granted 82% of the householder planning decisions it made in its latest published year — 5 points below the 87% England-wide householder average. Three Bridges contains Hazelwick Road Conservation Area, High Street Conservation Area, Queens Square and The Broadway Conservation Area conservation areas (Hazelwick Road Conservation Area designated 2013), so materials, fenestration and roof form are assessed against the appraisal, which is where a policy-literate drawing pack earns its keep. Its dominant postwar (1945–1970) housing stock sets the design brief on most streets.
Before permission is required, Class B allows 40m³ of added loft volume on a terrace and 50m³ on a semi or detached house, and Class A allows a 3m single-storey rear extension on a terrace or 4m on a detached house. Three Bridges carries at least one Article 4 direction, and conservation areas including Hazelwick Road Conservation Area, High Street Conservation Area and Queens Square and The Broadway Conservation Area remove those rights outright, so we confirm your exact address before a line is drawn. A validated householder application in Three Bridges is determined against an 8-week statutory target.
Hazelwick Road (conservation area designated in 2013), High Street (conservation area designated in 2022) and Queens Square and The Broadway (conservation area designated in 2022) — these are the Three Bridges pockets our drawings cover most. Heritage designations here include Hazelwick Road Conservation Area, High Street Conservation Area and Queens Square and The Broadway Conservation Area. Crawley Borough Council weighs each proposal against Crawley Borough Council's development plan and the design policies it applies to householder applications, where the 3,750 homes here are 20% 1945-1954, 14% 1955-1964, 11% 2000-2008, which is what sets the realistic roof and rear-projection options. On roofs the borough is simple gabled and hipped roofs typical of early postwar building and shallow gabled roofs typical of that period's building, over early postwar houses (20% of 3,750 homes), late-1950s and early-1960s houses (14%) and 2000s houses and apartments (11%).
What is permitted in Three Bridges turns on designation first, so that is where we start: Hazelwick Road (conservation area designated in 2013), High Street (conservation area designated in 2022) and Queens Square and The Broadway (conservation area designated in 2022). Inside those boundaries permitted development is curtailed and Crawley Borough Council assesses materials, window detail and roof form against the area's own appraisal, so a scheme that would be waved through two streets away can need a full application here.
Crawley Borough Council has 19 recorded Article 4 directions, removing permitted development for painting the exterior — check the address before assuming PD applies in Three Bridges.
On stock, Three Bridges is early postwar houses (20% of 3,750 homes), late-1950s and early-1960s houses (14%) and 2000s houses and apartments (11%) — which is why simple gabled and hipped roofs typical of early postwar building and shallow gabled roofs typical of that period's building govern what a loft or rear projection can realistically be. Crawley Borough Council decided 122 householder applications in the latest published year and granted 82%, with 26% issued inside the eight-week target. We draw to that record rather than to a national average.
The full build-period split for Three Bridges runs pre-1900 3% (120 homes), 1900-1918 3% (100 homes), 1919-1929 2% (70 homes), 1930-1939 4% (140 homes), 1945-1954 20% (750 homes), 1955-1964 14% (540 homes), 1965-1972 6% (240 homes), 1973-1982 3% (130 homes), 1983-1992 2% (60 homes), 1993-1999 4% (150 homes) and 2000-2008 11% (430 homes). That distribution is why pre-1900 detailing dominates the drawings here, and it is measured from council-tax records rather than assumed from the street name.
Crawley Borough Council also decides for Northgate & West Green and Southgate, so a decision in Three Bridges sits inside a wider pattern of decisions we track across the same authority — useful when an officer cites a precedent from the next area over.
The Article 4 directions recorded for this council include Aintree Road & Epsom Road, Arden Road, Ardingly Close and Beverley Mews. Each removes a specific permitted-development right inside its own boundary, which is why the check is done on the address rather than on the town.
Published figures for Three Bridges and Crawley Borough Council. These are the numbers that decide what is realistic on your street, so we work from them rather than from national averages.
| Measure | Three Bridges |
|---|---|
| Dwellings recorded | 3,750 |
| Built pre-1900 | 120 (3%) |
| Built 1900-1918 | 100 (3%) |
| Built 1919-1929 | 70 (2%) |
| Built 1930-1939 | 140 (4%) |
| Built 1945-1954 | 750 (20%) |
| Built 1955-1964 | 540 (14%) |
| Built 1965-1972 | 240 (6%) |
| Built 1973-1982 | 130 (3%) |
| Built 1983-1992 | 60 (2%) |
| Built 1993-1999 | 150 (4%) |
| Built 2000-2008 | 430 (11%) |
| Built before 1919 | 6% |
| Built 1919–1939 | 6% |
| Built 1945–2008 | 61% |
| Conservation areas in Three Bridges | 3 (Hazelwick Road Conservation Area, High Street Conservation Area…) |
| Conservation areas district-wide | 13 |
| Article 4 directions recorded | 19 |
| Householder applications decided | 122 |
| Householder applications granted | 82% |
| Decided within 8 weeks | 26% |
Dwelling stock from VOA council-tax data at 31 March 2025; conservation-area and Article 4 counts from planning.data.gov.uk (MHCLG); decision figures are Crawley Borough Council's own, from MHCLG live table PS2 for the year to 31 March 2026.
Three Bridges's roofs set the brief. The borough is built largely from early postwar houses (20% of 3,750 homes), late-1950s and early-1960s houses (14%) and 2000s houses and apartments (11%), and its lofts sit under simple gabled and hipped roofs typical of early postwar building and shallow gabled roofs typical of that period's building — the geometry that decides whether a rear dormer, a hip-to-gable or a mansard gives you the headroom you want. Crawley Borough Council assesses loft proposals against Crawley Borough Council's development plan and the design policies it applies to householder applications, and its case officers read each roof against the pair next door and the wider street before they read the plans.
That makes drawing quality decisive. We measure ridge and eaves heights, roof pitch and the existing stair, calculate the added volume against the permitted-development limits exactly, and show the workings on the drawings so Crawley Borough Council can verify them. Three Bridges contains Hazelwick Road Conservation Area, High Street Conservation Area, Queens Square and The Broadway Conservation Area conservation areas (Hazelwick Road Conservation Area designated 2013), so materials, fenestration and roof form are assessed against the appraisal, so we resolve it on the page rather than leave it for the case officer to raise.
Three Bridges also carries protected streets — Hazelwick Road Conservation Area, High Street Conservation Area and Queens Square and The Broadway Conservation Area among them. Crawley Borough Council has 19 recorded Article 4 directions, removing permitted development for painting the exterior — check the address before assuming PD applies in Three Bridges. We check your address against those designations before a line is drawn.
Many Three Bridges loft conversions proceed without planning permission — a rear dormer within the permitted-development volume limits (40 cubic metres on a terrace, 50 on a semi or detached house) is usually lawful. You will normally need a full application to Crawley Borough Council if any of these apply:
We draw the roof line, the ridge height and the neighbour's daylight on the page — the relationships Crawley Borough Council's officers check first — and submit a validation-complete pack, whether that is a lawful development certificate or a full householder application.
Below is Crawley Borough Council's real householder decision record, pulled from official planning statistics and updated as new data lands. Crawley Borough Council granted 82% of its householder applications in the year to 31 March 2026, and Hazelwick Road Conservation Area shapes what is approved here. Professionally prepared loft drawings anticipate those pressure points before submission, which is why complete, policy-literate packs are decided faster and refused less often than DIY applications.
Source: MHCLG planning application statistics (householder decisions, England, 1 April 2025 - 31 March 2026). Compare every borough on our London approval-rate league table.
Tell us about your project and get a fixed, no-obligation quote back within one working day. If you don't need planning permission at all, we'll tell you that too — for free.
Across Hazelwick Road, High Street and Queens Square and The Broadway, the recurring loft is the rear dormer — a box across the back roof slope that turns a cramped attic into a full-height double bedroom and en-suite. On simple gabled and hipped roofs typical of early postwar building, that is usually the most efficient use of the roof; where the stock is shallow gabled roofs typical of that period's building, a hip-to-gable followed by a rear dormer unlocks far more space, though it needs a full application.
The 3,750 homes here are 20% 1945-1954, 14% 1955-1964, 11% 2000-2008, which is what sets the realistic roof and rear-projection options. We draw the dormer inside the volume allowance, keep the flat-roof build-up below the ridge, and set the face back from the eaves as the rules require — so the pack answers Crawley Borough Council's questions before they are asked. Where permitted-development rights are exhausted or removed, we prepare a householder application composed to the borough's roof-alteration guidance instead.
We draw loft conversions on every street in the borough. A few of the neighbourhoods where Three Bridges roofs come up most often:
Loft conversion drawings for Hazelwick Road's conservation area designated in 2013 — measured, volume-checked and drawn to Crawley Borough Council's guidance.
Loft conversion drawings for High Street's conservation area designated in 2022 — measured, volume-checked and drawn to Crawley Borough Council's guidance.
Loft conversion drawings for Queens Square and The Broadway's conservation area designated in 2022 — measured, volume-checked and drawn to Crawley Borough Council's guidance.
The right loft in Three Bridges depends on your roof. This is how the main types compare on planning route and the space they add.
| Loft type | Permitted development? | Space & headroom | What Crawley Borough Council checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rear dormer | Usually yes, within volume limits | Full-height double room at the back | Volume, set-back from eaves, ridge height |
| Hip-to-gable | No — full application | Extends the whole side of the roof | Roof bulk and the symmetry of the pair |
| Mansard | No — full application | Maximum floor area across the roof | Street character, especially in conservation areas |
| Rooflights only | Usually yes (Class C) | Light and headroom, no extra footprint | Whether rooflights sit within the existing slope |
Route depends on your street — conservation areas such as Hazelwick Road Conservation Area and High Street Conservation Area and Article 4 directions can remove permitted-development rights.
A fixed process built around how Crawley Borough Council validates and decides householder loft applications — most drawings are submission-ready within seven days of survey.
Tell us your Three Bridges postcode and roof type. We confirm your conservation and Article 4 status, how much permitted-development volume you have left, and score your odds against live Crawley Borough Council decisions.
We measure ridge and eaves heights, roof pitch, joist levels and the existing stair — the numbers the volume calculation and head heights depend on.
Chartered designers develop the dormer, hip-to-gable or mansard to your brief, drawn inside the Class B limits or to Crawley Borough Council's roof-alteration guidance.
We submit the certificate or application, manage validation and case-officer queries, and revise the drawings free until Crawley Borough Council issues its decision.
Often not. A rear dormer within 40 cubic metres on a terrace, or 50 on a semi-detached or detached house, set back from the eaves and no higher than the ridge, is usually permitted development. In Three Bridges the main exceptions are hip-to-gable conversions, dormers visible from the highway, and homes in conservation areas such as Hazelwick Road Conservation Area and High Street Conservation Area or on streets with an Article 4 direction. Crawley Borough Council is the decision-maker.
Generally no. In conservation areas including Hazelwick Road Conservation Area and High Street Conservation Area, Class B permitted-development rights for lofts are removed, so a rear dormer that would be lawful elsewhere needs a full application to Crawley Borough Council. Crawley Borough Council has 19 recorded Article 4 directions, removing permitted development for painting the exterior — check the address before assuming PD applies in Three Bridges. We check your exact address before drawing.
On simple gabled and hipped roofs typical of early postwar building, common across Three Bridges, a rear dormer is usually the most efficient conversion and often permitted development. Where the roof is shallow gabled roofs typical of that period's building, a hip-to-gable followed by a rear dormer gains far more usable space but needs planning permission. Our survey confirms which your roof supports before we draw. Crawley Borough Council is the decision-maker.
A householder planning application in Three Bridges runs to a statutory eight-week target, and a lawful development certificate to eight weeks as well, though validation can add time if the pack is incomplete. We submit validation-complete drawings and manage case-officer queries to keep the decision on track. Crawley Borough Council is the decision-maker.
If your dormer is permitted development, a lawful development certificate from Crawley Borough Council is council-stamped proof of that — worth having, because every buyer's solicitor will ask for it when you sell. We prepare and submit the certificate application with the same drawing pack. This applies to your Three Bridges address specifically.
Every roof is different, so we quote each Three Bridges project individually — a fixed, no-obligation price back within one working day. The quote covers the full drawing pack with free revisions until Crawley Borough Council approves, and we tell you upfront whether your loft qualifies as permitted development. Call 020 7864 7245 to start.
Answer five quick questions and get a free planning score for your exact address — instantly. Then, if you want the full picture, unlock the detailed analysis: your council's live approval rates, local precedents, constraints on your street and a step-by-step route to permission.
Same fixed quotes, same fast drawings — wherever your project is.