House
extensions
in Paddington, W2
Architects, Engineers, Surveyors & Builders Under One Roof.
One Studio. One Contract. One Team.
RICS surveying support for party walls, licence to alter, conservation-area works & neighbour mattersWe design and build Paddington house extensions across Sussex Gardens, Porchester Terrace, Gloucester Square - side-return, rear, wraparound and double-storey additions for Italianate Stucco terraces, Canal-Side houses and larger family homes where planning strategy, conservation detailing, Party Wall sequencing and structural engineering need handling properly.
House Extensions in Paddington: What You Need to Know
Every house extension project in Paddington is designed to respect the Bayswater Conservation Area and the character of Italianate stucco terraces, canal-side houses, mansion flats. Our in-house RIBA Chartered Architects handle Westminster planning applications, our chartered structural engineers specify any load-bearing work, and our directly-employed trades deliver the build under one fixed-price contract. We coordinate Building Control, Party Wall awards where needed, and all certifications through to handover.
In Paddington's conservation area, extensions must be designed with exceptional sensitivity. Westminster officers assess impact on the host building, neighbouring properties, and the wider streetscape. We secure planning approval through design excellence and thorough pre-application engagement.
Mix of grand Victorian terraces near Hyde Park and characterful streets around Little Venice. Westminster conservation area protections. Paddington Basin regeneration area. Our extensions in Paddington use materials and detailing that complement the existing architecture — whether matching traditional brickwork and stonework or introducing high-quality contemporary glazing and zinc cladding.
In W2 the terrace, not the house, is the unit of design. Gloucester Square and Hyde Park Square carry white-fronted terraces and garden-square houses whose value lies in the unbroken run; Sussex Gardens is broad and stuccoed; and towards Little Venice, Porchester Terrace turns to villas and canal-side houses that meet the water on their own terms. Westminster’s conservation areas protect both the stuccoed streets and the canal basin, so an extension is judged as an intervention in a composition rather than a private matter.
That scrutiny is not theoretical. Westminster examines external change closely, the long stucco runs are protected, and canal-side sites add their own demands alongside party-wall constraints — which is why visible fabric, leasehold approvals and structural scope are separated before design work is priced. The terraces and squares suit rear schemes handled with conservation-led care; the mansion flats are freeholder conversations first.
Then there is the practical W2: a district balancing residential quiet with central-London access, where storage, deliveries and neighbour management need planning as early as the structural design. Costs follow terrace structure, facade and sash decisions, roof interfaces and those central-London logistics.
House Extensions in Paddington: Applied to the Local Stock
Paddington sits in the City of Westminster, with conservation areas protecting its stuccoed streets and the canal basin at Little Venice’s edge. London-wide cost band for rear extension — single storey: £71,250–£112,500 excluding VAT (Resi rear extension cost guide, Oct 2025).
Sources: Westminster City Council — Bayswater Conservation Area mini guide (Oct 2004) (2026); Rear extension — single storey (Resi rear extension cost guide, Oct 2025) (2026)
What a House Extension Involves
An extension reshapes how the whole ground floor works, not just how big it is — the new structure, the opening into the existing house, the kitchen and the garden connection all have to be designed as one move. We take each project from feasibility drawings through consents, structure and fit-out under a single fixed-price contract. Most extensions we build include the scope below.
- Rear extensions — single-storey additions that open the back of the house to the garden
- Side-return & wraparound — infilling the side alley of a terrace, alone or combined with a rear addition
- Double-storey — new bedrooms or bathrooms above the ground-floor addition, designed to sit comfortably with the original roofline
- Foundations & steel — groundworks, beams and the opening into the existing house, engineered by our own structural team
- Glazing — rooflights, glazed roofs and slim-framed sliding or bi-fold doors specified for light and thermal performance
- Kitchen integration — the kitchen layout planned with the architecture from the first drawing, not squeezed in afterwards
- Services & heating — electrics, plumbing, drainage and underfloor heating built into the new floor
- External works — patio, drainage connections and garden reinstatement completed within the contract
How We Run Your Project
Six stages, with the consents and engineering settled before the first spade goes in.
- Feasibility visit — we assess the site, the boundaries and your brief, and identify the right consent route for your property.
- Design & approvals — our architects draw the scheme while planning or permitted development paperwork, structural calculations and party wall notices progress together.
- Fixed-price contract — every element specified and priced before construction, from foundations to door hardware.
- Groundworks & shell — excavation, foundations, walls, steel and roof, taken to weathertight while you carry on living in the house.
- Fit-out — insulation, services, glazing, kitchen, flooring and decoration, with the opening into the existing house formed once the shell is sealed.
- Completion — building control inspection, snagging, external works and handover with the full certification pack.
Read the full house extension guide for extension types, permitted development limits and the build programme stage by stage.
Many rear extensions can proceed under permitted development — broadly up to 3m deep on attached houses and 4m on detached, extendable to 6m and 8m through the prior approval scheme — but conservation areas, Article 4 directions and listed status change the picture, and every extension needs Building Regulations approval regardless of the planning route. Where foundations come within 3m of a neighbouring building, the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 obliges you to give adjoining owners a minimum of two months’ written notice before construction can begin. Our planning guide library sets out the rules for each borough.
Why Hampstead Renovations
We hold £10 million public liability insurance with Aviva; the certificate is available on request.
House Extensions in Paddington: Questions
Do I need planning permission to extend a house in Paddington?
Work on that basis. Paddington sits in the City of Westminster with conservation areas protecting its stuccoed streets and the canal basin at Little Venice's edge, and getting to grips with Westminster's conservation rules early is what keeps a W2 scheme on track. We establish the planning position before the extension is designed, not after.
Will my Paddington extension involve the party wall?
On a terrace, almost inevitably. Westminster scrutinises external change and the long stucco runs are protected, while canal-side and party-wall constraints bring demands of their own — which is why visible fabric, leasehold approvals and structural scope are separated early, each on its proper track. Party-wall matters are then sequenced ahead of the build so the programme never stalls on a notice.
What does a wraparound extension cost in Paddington?
The indicative London market band for a wraparound extension is £100,000–£200,000. In Paddington that budget plays out across very different hosts — the handsome white-fronted terraces and garden-square houses of Gloucester Square and Hyde Park Square, and the villas and canal-side houses towards Little Venice — so we confirm a figure once we have seen the property.
Can leasehold and mews properties in Paddington be extended?
Paddington W2 brings together Victorian terraces, mansion flats, mews houses and the streets around Sussex Gardens, and the route differs by tenure: mews houses are usually judged on their conservation setting, while mansion flats are leasehold, with structure, acoustics and freeholder consents handled together under Westminster conservation control before any extension thinking can firm up.
Does being near the canal change an extension in Paddington?
It adds a discipline of its own. The villas and water-facing houses of Porchester Terrace and the streets towards Little Venice need careful detailing towards the water, and Westminster’s conservation protection extends to the canal basin at Little Venice’s edge — so rear additions on canal-side plots are designed for both the street and the waterway they address.
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We survey your property, discuss your vision and provide a clear budget framework.