Wandsworth gives no depth figure for the back of a house. Its Housing SPD gives a method instead, built on daylight, the neighbour to the north and the boundary. We run that method on your plot before you commit to a design.
The Housing SPD adopted in 2016 treats the back of the house as a neighbour problem, not a measuring exercise. Paragraph 4.21 says rear extensions should respect the shape and form of the house and not be over-dominant, and it picks out one case above all: a neighbour on the north side of the proposed extension, because that is where the effect on sunlight and daylight is likely to be greatest.
The SPD then sets the test. An extension must allow adequate sunlight and daylight to reach adjoining properties in line with the Building Research Establishment guide, Site Layout Planning for Daylight and Sunlight (2011). A planning officer assesses each application, and the SPD says the council may require the size to be reduced if overshadowing is unreasonable. The practical guidance is plain: keep height and bulk on the boundary to a minimum, especially on the south side, and avoid two-storey extensions directly on a boundary.
On a Battersea or Tooting terrace, how far you can go therefore depends partly on the compass. Where the neighbour lies to the north of your extension, the SPD expects the council to look hardest at the shadow it casts, so that side has the least room for bulk. Our survey records the orientation, the neighbours' window positions and the boundary heights so the drawings answer the question the officer will ask.
Four points in the Housing SPD and the July 2026 checklist decide how a Wandsworth scheme is judged.
| Test | What Wandsworth says | On our drawings |
|---|---|---|
| Daylight | Meet the BRE 2011 daylight and sunlight guidance | Neighbour windows and orientation recorded |
| Boundary bulk | Keep height and bulk on the boundary to a minimum; avoid two storeys on it | Boundary section drawn |
| Privacy | New windows and terraces must not overlook neighbours' rooms or gardens | Window and terrace positions shown |
| Fire safety | Householder applications carry a fire safety strategy or an exemption statement | Right form completed before submission |
Wandsworth Council, Housing SPD 2016, paras 4.21 to 4.24; Local Validation Checklist, July 2026.
The fee includes our measured visit. The bracketed figure applies if you already have measured drawings.
Wandsworth has 46 conservation areas, from Battersea Square to the Alton Estates in Roehampton. Eight of them have Article 4(2) directions that limit some works to the outside of dwellings: Dover House Estate, Heaver Estate, Latchmere Estate, Putney Lower Common, Roehampton Village, Shaftesbury Park Estate, Totterdown Fields Estate and Wandsworth Common. The council says some directions cover only part of an area and only specific works, so the wording for your street matters.
For example, a house on the Shaftesbury Park Estate in Battersea has to be checked against its direction before anyone assumes the 3 metre permitted development limit. A similar house outside the eight areas may need no application at all, which a lawful development certificate can prove.
Once an application is valid, Wandsworth says it aims to decide householder and small-scale developments in 8 weeks, with consultation letters out within a week of registration and a three-week notification period for neighbours.
Every figure is linked to the page or document we read.
Wandsworth's Housing SPD (2016) says an extension must allow adequate sunlight and daylight to reach adjoining properties in line with BRE guidance of 2011.
Source: Wandsworth Council, Housing SPD adopted 2016, para 4.22The SPD says 2-storey extensions directly on the boundary with a neighbour should be avoided.
Source: Wandsworth Council, Housing SPD adopted 2016, para 4.23Wandsworth lists 8 conservation areas subject to Article 4 directions, including Shaftesbury Park Estate, Wandsworth Common and Putney Lower Common.
Source: Wandsworth Council, Article 4 DirectionsWandsworth contains 46 conservation areas.
Source: Wandsworth Council, Conservation areas FAQWandsworth aims to decide householder and small-scale applications in 8 weeks and to send consultation letters within 1 week of registration.
Source: Wandsworth Council, Planning application processWandsworth's Local Validation Checklist of July 2026 asks for a fire safety strategy, with exemption statements available.
Source: Wandsworth Council, Local Validation Checklist, July 2026Wandsworth decided 657 householder applications between July 2025 and June 2026, prior approvals excluded, and 597 of them were decided within 8 weeks.
Source: MHCLG, Planning application statistics PS2, July 2025 to June 2026Permitted development allows a single-storey rear extension up to 4 metres on a detached house or 3 metres on any other house.
Source: legislation.gov.uk, GPDO 2015, Schedule 2, Part 1, Class ATell 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.
Wandsworth's Housing SPD gives no maximum depth. Each scheme is judged on daylight to neighbours against the BRE 2011 standard, on bulk at the boundary and on privacy. Permitted development, where it applies, allows 3 metres on most houses and 4 on a detached one.
Yes. The SPD singles out a neighbour to the north of the proposed extension as the place where the effect on sunlight and daylight is likely to be greatest, and asks for the height and bulk on the boundary to be kept to a minimum, especially on the south side.
It needs a full application, and the SPD says two-storey extensions directly on a boundary with a neighbour should be avoided. Setting the upper storey away from the boundary is the usual way to reduce loss of outlook and daylight.
Dover House Estate, Heaver Estate, Latchmere Estate, Putney Lower Common, Roehampton Village, Shaftesbury Park Estate, Totterdown Fields Estate and Wandsworth Common. Some directions cover only part of an area, so check the wording for your street.
£765 inc survey (£565 if you supply measured drawings). That covers the measured survey, the drawings and the submission, with free revisions until the council decides. Wandsworth's own application fee is separate and goes to the council.
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