Two-storey extension drawings for St Stephen's homes — bedroom above, living space below, drawn against the 3-metre projection and 7-metre boundary rules and to Canterbury City Council's design guidance, delivered in days and revised free until your decision.
Canterbury City Council granted 97% of the householder planning decisions it made in its latest published year — 10 points above the 87% England-wide householder average. St Stephen's contains CANTERBURY ( WEST STATION ) (Canterbury Conservation Area) Registered 04.12.1996, CANTERBURY AND WHITSTABLE RAILWAY (ST. STEPHEN'S), CANTERBURY ST STEPHEN'S NO.2 (Canterbury Conservation Area) registered 18.11.1974 conservation areas (CANTERBURY ( WEST STATION ) (Canterbury Conservation Area) Registered 04.12.1996 designated 1996), 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.
Class A and Class B set the thresholds — a rear dormer to 40m³ on a terrace or 50m³ on a semi or detached, and a single-storey rear extension to 3m on a terrace or 4m on a detached house — beyond which Canterbury City Council needs a full application. St Stephen's carries at least one Article 4 direction, and conservation areas including CANTERBURY ( WEST STATION ) (Canterbury Conservation Area) Registered 04.12.1996, CANTERBURY AND WHITSTABLE RAILWAY (ST. STEPHEN'S) and CANTERBURY ST STEPHEN'S NO.2 (Canterbury Conservation Area) registered 18.11.1974 remove those rights outright, so we confirm your exact address before a line is drawn. A validated householder application in St Stephen's is determined against an 8-week statutory target.
CANTERBURY ( WEST STATION ) (Canterbury Conservation Area) Registered 04.12.1996 (conservation area designated in 1996), CANTERBURY AND WHITSTABLE RAILWAY (ST. STEPHEN'S) (conservation area designated in 1998), CANTERBURY ST STEPHEN'S NO.2 (Canterbury Conservation Area) registered 18.11.1974 (conservation area designated in 1974) and THE CANTERBURY AND WHITSTABLE RAILWAY ( HACKINGTON ) (conservation area designated in 1996) — these are the St Stephen's pockets our drawings cover most. Heritage designations here include CANTERBURY ( WEST STATION ) (Canterbury Conservation Area) Registered 04.12.1996, CANTERBURY AND WHITSTABLE RAILWAY (ST. STEPHEN'S), CANTERBURY ST STEPHEN'S NO.2 (Canterbury Conservation Area) registered 18.11.1974 and THE CANTERBURY AND WHITSTABLE RAILWAY ( HACKINGTON ) CONSERVATION AREA. Canterbury City Council weighs each proposal against the adopted Canterbury local plan and Canterbury City Council's design guidance for householder work, where the 3,080 homes here are 32% 1973-1982, 24% 1965-1972, 18% 1955-1964, which is what sets the realistic roof and rear-projection options. On roofs the borough is shallow trussed roofs typical of 1970s building and shallow-pitched roofs and integral garages typical of that period's building, over 1970s and early-1980s houses (32% of 3,080 homes), late-1960s and early-1970s houses (24%) and late-1950s and early-1960s houses (18%).
Heritage designation is the single biggest variable in St Stephen's, and it is address-specific: CANTERBURY ( WEST STATION ) (Canterbury Conservation Area) Registered 04.12.1996 (conservation area designated in 1996), CANTERBURY AND WHITSTABLE RAILWAY (ST. STEPHEN'S) (conservation area designated in 1998), CANTERBURY ST STEPHEN'S NO.2 (Canterbury Conservation Area) registered 18.11.1974 (conservation area designated in 1974) and THE CANTERBURY AND WHITSTABLE RAILWAY ( HACKINGTON ) (conservation area designated in 1996). Inside those boundaries permitted development is curtailed and Canterbury City 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.
Canterbury City Council has 463 recorded Article 4 directions — check the address before assuming PD applies in St Stephen's.
On stock, St Stephen's is 1970s and early-1980s houses (32% of 3,080 homes), late-1960s and early-1970s houses (24%) and late-1950s and early-1960s houses (18%) — which is why shallow trussed roofs typical of 1970s building and shallow-pitched roofs and integral garages typical of that period's building govern what a loft or rear projection can realistically be. Canterbury City Council decided 580 householder applications in the latest published year and granted 97%, with 43% issued inside the eight-week target. We work from the council's own published record.
The full build-period split for St Stephen's runs pre-1900 3% (90 homes), 1900-1918 1% (40 homes), 1919-1929 2% (60 homes), 1930-1939 7% (220 homes), 1945-1954 1% (20 homes), 1955-1964 18% (560 homes), 1965-1972 24% (750 homes), 1973-1982 32% (990 homes), 1983-1992 5% (150 homes), 1993-1999 1% (40 homes) and 2000-2008 4% (120 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.
Canterbury City Council also decides for Blean Forest, Chestfield, Gorrell, Herne & Broomfield, Heron, Westgate, Wincheap and Little Stour & Adisham, so a decision in St Stephen's 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 AND 2 CHURCH COTTAGES, CHURCH LANE, NACKINGTON, 1 BOURNE COTTAGES, THE STREET, BISHOPSBOURNE, 1 BOX TREE COTTAGES, BOLTS HILL and 1 BUTTS COTTAGES, LOWER HARDRES. 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 St Stephen's and Canterbury City Council. These are the numbers that decide what is realistic on your street, so we work from them rather than from national averages.
| Measure | St Stephen's |
|---|---|
| Dwellings recorded | 3,080 |
| Built pre-1900 | 90 (3%) |
| Built 1900-1918 | 40 (1%) |
| Built 1919-1929 | 60 (2%) |
| Built 1930-1939 | 220 (7%) |
| Built 1945-1954 | 20 (1%) |
| Built 1955-1964 | 560 (18%) |
| Built 1965-1972 | 750 (24%) |
| Built 1973-1982 | 990 (32%) |
| Built 1983-1992 | 150 (5%) |
| Built 1993-1999 | 40 (1%) |
| Built 2000-2008 | 120 (4%) |
| Built before 1919 | 4% |
| Built 1919–1939 | 9% |
| Built 1945–2008 | 85% |
| Conservation areas in St Stephen's | 4 (CANTERBURY ( WEST STATION ) (Canterbury Conservation Area) Registered 04.12.1996, CANTERBURY AND WHITSTABLE RAILWAY (ST. STEPHEN'S)…) |
| Conservation areas district-wide | 98 |
| Article 4 directions recorded | 463 |
| Householder applications decided | 580 |
| Householder applications granted | 97% |
| Decided within 8 weeks | 43% |
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 Canterbury City Council's own, from MHCLG live table PS2 for the year to 31 March 2026.
Adding at first floor changes the question the case officer asks. A single-storey extension is judged mostly on daylight and garden loss; a two-storey extension is judged on overlooking, bulk against the neighbouring roofline, and whether it reads as part of the house or bolted onto it. St Stephen's is largely 1970s and early-1980s houses (32% of 3,080 homes), late-1960s and early-1970s houses (24%) and late-1950s and early-1960s houses (18%), and shallow trussed roofs typical of 1970s building and shallow-pitched roofs and integral garages typical of that period's building set what a matching roof actually means here.
The permitted-development route exists but is narrow: 3 metres of rear projection, a 7-metre stand-off from the rear boundary, eaves and ridge no higher than the original, and side-facing upper windows obscure-glazed and non-opening below 1.7 metres above floor level. Most two-storey schemes fail one of those, usually the 7-metre boundary rule on a shorter garden, and go in as a full application instead. We establish which route applies before designing, because it changes the drawing set.
St Stephen's contains CANTERBURY ( WEST STATION ) (Canterbury Conservation Area) Registered 04.12.1996, CANTERBURY AND WHITSTABLE RAILWAY (ST. STEPHEN'S), CANTERBURY ST STEPHEN'S NO.2 (Canterbury Conservation Area) registered 18.11.1974 conservation areas (CANTERBURY ( WEST STATION ) (Canterbury Conservation Area) Registered 04.12.1996 designated 1996), so materials, fenestration and roof form are assessed against the appraisal. Canterbury City Council has 463 recorded Article 4 directions — check the address before assuming PD applies in St Stephen's.
Some two-storey rear extensions are permitted development. You will need a full application to Canterbury City Council if any of these apply:
We set the projection and boundary distance on the site plan, prove the roof-pitch match on the elevations, and specify obscure glazing on the side windows — the three things Canterbury City Council checks first — then submit a validation-complete pack.
Below is Canterbury City Council's real householder decision record, drawn from official planning statistics and refreshed as new data lands. Canterbury City Council granted 97% of its householder applications in the year to 31 March 2026, and CANTERBURY ( WEST STATION ) (Canterbury Conservation Area) Registered 04.12.1996 shapes what is approved here. Two-storey schemes attract more neighbour comment than any other householder work, so the overlooking and daylight case has to be made on the drawings.
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 CANTERBURY ( WEST STATION ) (Canterbury Conservation Area) Registered 04.12.1996, CANTERBURY AND WHITSTABLE RAILWAY (ST. STEPHEN'S) and CANTERBURY ST STEPHEN'S NO.2 (Canterbury Conservation Area) registered 18.11.1974, the schemes that succeed set the first floor back from the ground floor, keep the ridge below the original, and treat the flank wall as blank or obscure-glazed. On 1970s and early-1980s houses (32% of 3,080 homes), matching the eaves line matters more than matching the brick: an extension that carries the existing eaves through reads as original even in a different material.
The 3,080 homes here are 32% 1973-1982, 24% 1965-1972, 18% 1955-1964, which is what sets the realistic roof and rear-projection options. We draw the 45-degree daylight test from the neighbour's nearest habitable window, show the window positions in section, and set out the steel and foundation implications early — a two-storey extension changes the load path, so the structural design and the planning design have to be developed together rather than in sequence.
We draw two-storey extensions across St Stephen's. A few of the areas where they come up most often:
Two storey extension drawings for CANTERBURY ( WEST STATION ) (Canterbury Conservation Area) Registered 04.12.1996 — conservation area designated in 1996 — dimensioned against the 3m and 7m limits and drawn to Canterbury City Council's guidance.
Two storey extension drawings for CANTERBURY AND WHITSTABLE RAILWAY (ST. STEPHEN'S) — conservation area designated in 1998 — dimensioned against the 3m and 7m limits and drawn to Canterbury City Council's guidance.
Two storey extension drawings for CANTERBURY ST STEPHEN'S NO.2 (Canterbury Conservation Area) registered 18.11.1974 — conservation area designated in 1974 — dimensioned against the 3m and 7m limits and drawn to Canterbury City Council's guidance.
Two storey extension drawings for THE CANTERBURY AND WHITSTABLE RAILWAY ( HACKINGTON ) — conservation area designated in 1996 — dimensioned against the 3m and 7m limits and drawn to Canterbury City Council's guidance.
The first-floor limits are tighter than the ground-floor ones. This is how the common cases compare.
| Scheme | Permitted development? | Deciding limit | What Canterbury City Council checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Two-storey rear, 3m projection, 7m+ to boundary | Often yes | 3m projection / 7m boundary | Roof match, side-window glazing |
| Two-storey rear, under 7m to boundary | No — full application | Rear-boundary distance | Overlooking, daylight, garden loss |
| Two-storey side extension | No — full application | Side elevation | Gap to boundary, street rhythm |
| Two-storey wraparound | No — full application | Combined footprint | Bulk, massing, neighbour amenity |
| Any two-storey on designated land | No — full application | Designation | Character and appearance |
Limits from the GPDO 2015, Schedule 2, Part 1, Class A — two-storey rear extension conditions.
A fixed process built around how Canterbury City Council validates and decides two-storey applications.
Send us your St Stephen's postcode and garden depth. We measure the 7-metre boundary rule against your plot, confirm designation status, and score your odds against live Canterbury City Council decisions.
We measure the original rear wall, eaves and ridge heights, garden depth and every neighbouring window that faces the site — the inputs the daylight and overlooking case is built from.
Chartered designers develop the two-storey addition to your brief with the roof and eaves resolved, and we coordinate the load path so the structural scheme and the planning scheme are the same building.
We submit the application, manage validation and case-officer queries, and revise the drawings free until Canterbury City Council issues its decision.
Often, but not always. A two-storey rear extension can be permitted development if it projects no more than 3 metres, sits at least 7 metres from the rear boundary, does not exceed the existing eaves and ridge, and has obscure-glazed non-opening side windows below 1.7 metres. In St Stephen's, the 7-metre rule is what most commonly forces a full application to Canterbury City Council.
No part of a permitted-development two-storey rear extension may come within 7 metres of the boundary opposite the rear wall of the house. It exists to protect the neighbour behind you from being overlooked at first floor. On shorter St Stephen's gardens this is decisive, and we measure it on survey before any design work rather than discovering it at validation. Canterbury City Council is the decision-maker.
Not under permitted development — two-storey side extensions always need a full application to Canterbury City Council. They are assessed on the gap to the boundary, whether the street's rhythm of spaces between houses survives, and whether the extension is subordinate to the original. Setting the first floor back from the front building line and down from the ridge is what usually makes the difference. This applies to your St Stephen's address specifically.
Overlooking is the most common objection, and it is answerable on the drawings. We position habitable-room windows away from neighbouring gardens, obscure-glaze and fix shut anything on the flank below 1.7 metres, and show the sight lines in section. Where the geometry is tight, a rooflight or a high-level window gives the same daylight without the mutual overlooking that draws objections. This applies to your St Stephen's address specifically. Canterbury City Council is the decision-maker.
Almost certainly. Excavating within 3 metres of a neighbouring structure and building on or up to the boundary both trigger the Party Wall etc. Act 1996, and a two-storey extension usually does both. It is entirely separate from Canterbury City Council's planning decision, so we flag the notice period early and detail the junction on the drawings. This applies to your St Stephen's address specifically.
Yes. Adding a floor changes the load path from roof to foundation, so beams, padstones and foundation depths all need designing and calculating for building control. Planning and building regulations are separate consents, and the structural set is what building control assesses — we prepare both so the approved scheme is the buildable one. This applies to your St Stephen's address specifically. Canterbury City Council is the decision-maker.
We quote each St Stephen's two-storey extension individually, because plot depth, roof form and structural complexity vary house to house, and send a fixed, no-obligation quote within one working day. It covers the drawing pack with free revisions until Canterbury City Council approves. Call 020 7864 7245 to start.
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