Back-of-house extension drawings for Bush Fair homes — the glazed kitchen-diner across the rear, drawn to Harlow District Council's depth and daylight limits, delivered in days and revised free until your decision, with a free approval-odds check first.
Harlow District Council granted 79% of the householder planning decisions it made in its latest published year — 8 points below the 87% England-wide householder average. Bush Fair contains Netteswellbury, Puffers Green, Tye Green conservation areas (Netteswellbury designated 1986), 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.
The permitted-development ceilings are fixed: 40m³ of new roof volume for a terraced loft and 50m³ for a semi or detached house under Class B, plus a 3m single-storey rear extension on a terrace or 4m on a detached house under Class A. Bush Fair carries at least one Article 4 direction, and conservation areas including Netteswellbury, Puffers Green and Tye Green remove those rights outright, so we confirm your exact address before a line is drawn. A validated householder application in Bush Fair is determined against an 8-week statutory target.
Netteswellbury (conservation area designated in 1986), Puffers Green (conservation area designated in 1995) and Tye Green (conservation area designated in 1999) — these are the Bush Fair pockets our drawings cover most. Heritage designations here include Netteswellbury, Puffers Green and Tye Green. Harlow District Council weighs each proposal against the adopted Harlow local plan and Harlow District Council's design guidance for householder work, where the 4,010 homes here are 72% 1955-1964, 12% 1965-1972, 7% 1945-1954, which is what sets the realistic roof and rear-projection options. On roofs the borough is shallow gabled roofs typical of that period's building and shallow-pitched roofs and integral garages typical of that period's building, over late-1950s and early-1960s houses (72% of 4,010 homes), late-1960s and early-1970s houses (12%) and early postwar houses (7%).
Before anything is drawn we check your address against the designations that apply in Bush Fair: Netteswellbury (conservation area designated in 1986), Puffers Green (conservation area designated in 1995) and Tye Green (conservation area designated in 1999). Inside those boundaries permitted development is curtailed and Harlow District 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.
Harlow District Council has 14 recorded Article 4 directions, removing permitted development for rear and side extensions and other roof alterations, including rooflights — check the address before assuming PD applies in Bush Fair.
On stock, Bush Fair is late-1950s and early-1960s houses (72% of 4,010 homes), late-1960s and early-1970s houses (12%) and early postwar houses (7%) — which is why shallow gabled roofs typical of that period's building and shallow-pitched roofs and integral garages typical of that period's building govern what a loft or rear projection can realistically be. Harlow District Council decided 149 householder applications in the latest published year and granted 79%, with 67% issued inside the eight-week target. That decision record, not a national figure, is what we design to.
The full build-period split for Bush Fair runs pre-1900 0% (10 homes), 1945-1954 7% (300 homes), 1955-1964 72% (2,900 homes), 1965-1972 12% (500 homes), 1973-1982 2% (100 homes), 1983-1992 1% (50 homes), 1993-1999 1% (50 homes) and 2000-2008 1% (30 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.
Harlow District Council also decides for Mark Hall and Old Harlow, so a decision in Bush Fair 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 1 to 56 Morley Grove, 57 to 99 Morley Grove, Churchgate Street and Field House and Goodman House (Burnt Mill Industrial Estate). 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 Bush Fair and Harlow District Council. These are the numbers that decide what is realistic on your street, so we work from them rather than from national averages.
| Measure | Bush Fair |
|---|---|
| Dwellings recorded | 4,010 |
| Built pre-1900 | 10 (0%) |
| Built 1945-1954 | 300 (7%) |
| Built 1955-1964 | 2,900 (72%) |
| Built 1965-1972 | 500 (12%) |
| Built 1973-1982 | 100 (2%) |
| Built 1983-1992 | 50 (1%) |
| Built 1993-1999 | 50 (1%) |
| Built 2000-2008 | 30 (1%) |
| Built before 1919 | 0% |
| Built 1919–1939 | 0% |
| Built 1945–2008 | 98% |
| Conservation areas in Bush Fair | 3 (Netteswellbury, Puffers Green…) |
| Conservation areas district-wide | 10 |
| Article 4 directions recorded | 14 |
| Householder applications decided | 149 |
| Householder applications granted | 79% |
| Decided within 8 weeks | 67% |
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 Harlow District Council's own, from MHCLG live table PS2 for the year to 31 March 2026.
The rear extension is the workhorse of Bush Fair home improvement — it is how a dark back kitchen becomes an open family room facing the garden. Because the borough is built largely from late-1950s and early-1960s houses (72% of 4,010 homes), late-1960s and early-1970s houses (12%) and early postwar houses (7%), most back walls sit close to a neighbour on at least one side, and that proximity, not the design, is what Harlow District Council scrutinises. The council reads the proposal against the adopted Harlow local plan and Harlow District Council's design guidance for householder work, and the first line an officer draws is the 45-degree splay from the neighbour's nearest window.
So the drawings live or die on geometry. We set the depth against the exact permitted-development figure, hold the eaves and the flat-roof or lantern build-up under the 4-metre height ceiling, and show the projection tested against both the 45-degree plan angle and the 25-degree section angle to the neighbouring windows. Bush Fair contains Netteswellbury, Puffers Green, Tye Green conservation areas (Netteswellbury designated 1986), so materials, fenestration and roof form are assessed against the appraisal, so the rear elevation is composed around it rather than corrected after an objection.
Where the property sits in a conservation area — Netteswellbury, Puffers Green and Tye Green among Bush Fair's — the larger-home extension route is switched off and even a modest rear addition needs consent. Harlow District Council has 14 recorded Article 4 directions, removing permitted development for rear and side extensions and other roof alterations, including rooflights — check the address before assuming PD applies in Bush Fair. We confirm the designation before the survey.
Many single-storey rear extensions in Bush Fair are permitted development and need no application. You will normally need to apply to Harlow District Council, or use the larger-home prior-approval route, if any of these apply:
We draw the depth, the roof build-up and the daylight splays to each neighbour on the page — the tests Harlow District Council's officers apply first — and submit a validation-complete pack, whether that is a lawful development certificate, a larger-home prior-approval notice or a full householder application.
Below is Harlow District Council's real householder decision record, taken from official planning statistics and refreshed as new data lands. Harlow District Council granted 79% of its householder applications in the year to 31 March 2026, and Netteswellbury shapes what is approved here. Rear extensions turn most often on neighbour daylight and depth, so a drawing pack that proves those tests upfront is decided faster and refused less often than a DIY submission.
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 Netteswellbury, Puffers Green and Tye Green, the approved rear extension is typically a single-storey glazed box within the depth limit, roofed either flat with a lantern or in a shallow mono-pitch, and finished in brick or render to match the host wall. On the borough's late-1950s and early-1960s houses (72% of 4,010 homes), keeping the projection to the permitted-development figure often avoids an application entirely; where owners want the full 6 metres, the larger-home route succeeds when the neighbour-consultation period passes without a sustained objection.
The 4,010 homes here are 72% 1955-1964, 12% 1965-1972, 7% 1945-1954, which is what sets the realistic roof and rear-projection options. We keep the extension inside the daylight splays, set any glazed roof below the first-floor cill, and retain the garden depth Harlow District Council expects — so the back elevation answers the amenity case before a neighbour can lodge one. Two-storey rear extensions we draw with the 7-metre boundary gap and privacy screening resolved on the plan.
We draw rear extensions on every street in the borough. A few of the neighbourhoods where Bush Fair back-of-house projects come up most often:
Rear extension drawings for Netteswellbury's conservation area designated in 1986 — depth-checked, daylight-tested and drawn to Harlow District Council's guidance.
Rear extension drawings for Puffers Green's conservation area designated in 1995 — depth-checked, daylight-tested and drawn to Harlow District Council's guidance.
Rear extension drawings for Tye Green's conservation area designated in 1999 — depth-checked, daylight-tested and drawn to Harlow District Council's guidance.
How far you can extend at the back in Bush Fair depends on your house type and the route you take. This is how the options compare.
| Route | Depth allowed | Consent needed | What Harlow District Council checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard permitted development | 3m terrace/semi · 4m detached | Lawful development certificate (optional) | Depth, 4m height, materials |
| Larger-home prior approval | 6m terrace/semi · 8m detached | Prior-approval notice + neighbour consultation | Neighbour objections on amenity |
| Full householder application | Beyond the above, or two-storey | Full planning permission | Daylight (45°/25°), bulk, garden retained |
| Conservation area | Case by case | Full planning permission | Character, roof form, boundary treatment |
The larger-home route is switched off on designated land — conservation areas such as Netteswellbury and Puffers Green and Article 4 streets need a full application.
A fixed process built around how Harlow District Council validates and decides rear-extension applications — most drawings are submission-ready within seven days of survey.
Send us your Bush Fair postcode and house type. We confirm your conservation and Article 4 status, how much rear-extension depth you have under permitted development, and score your odds against live Harlow District Council decisions.
We measure the original rear wall, floor and eaves levels, side and rear boundary distances and the neighbours' window positions — the numbers the depth limit and daylight splays depend on.
Chartered designers develop the single or two-storey rear extension to your brief, drawn inside the permitted-development limits or to Harlow District Council's extension design guidance, with the daylight angles shown.
We submit the certificate, prior-approval notice or application, handle validation and case-officer queries, and revise the drawings free until Harlow District Council issues its decision.
Often not. A single-storey rear extension up to 3 metres deep on a terrace or semi, or 4 metres on a detached house, and no higher than 4 metres, is usually permitted development in Bush Fair. You will need to involve Harlow District Council for anything deeper via the larger-home route, for two-storey rear extensions, and for any rear extension in a conservation area such as Netteswellbury and Puffers Green, where those permitted-development rights fall away.
The larger-home extension scheme lets a single-storey rear extension reach 6 metres on a terrace or semi, or 8 metres on a detached house — double the standard allowance. It is not automatic: you submit a prior-approval notification to Harlow District Council, neighbours are consulted, and if one objects on amenity grounds the council rules on it. It also does not apply on designated land such as Bush Fair's conservation areas.
It is the daylight test Harlow District Council applies to protect neighbours. Drawn on plan, a line at 45 degrees from the midpoint of the neighbour's nearest ground-floor window should not be crossed by your extension; a companion 25-degree line is checked in section. If the projection breaches it, the extension is likely to be shortened or refused, so we test and prove it on the drawings before submission. This applies to your Bush Fair address specifically.
A two-storey rear extension almost always needs a full householder application to Harlow District Council, as it sits outside permitted development on most homes. The council checks that it stays at least 7 metres from the rear boundary, does not overbear the neighbours and avoids new overlooking. We resolve the boundary gap, privacy and daylight on the plans so the application is decided on its merits. This applies to your Bush Fair address specifically.
Frequently, yes. If the rear extension involves work to a shared wall, building up to the boundary, or excavating foundations near a neighbour's structure, the Party Wall etc. Act applies and you must serve notice — this is separate from Harlow District Council's planning decision. We flag it early and can prepare the drawings a party-wall surveyor needs alongside the planning set. This applies to your Bush Fair address specifically.
We price each Bush Fair rear extension on its own footprint and send a fixed, no-obligation quote within one working day. It covers the full drawing pack with free revisions until Harlow District Council approves, and we confirm at the outset whether your extension is permitted development, needs prior approval, or a full application. Call 020 7864 7245 to begin.
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