Rather than imposing our thoughts onto the client, we encourage them to sieve through different ideas and allow them to access their own needs.

We encourage this to allow the Client an immediate ‘feel’ for their house. We at Tumilty Design realise that this is the Clients house not ours!!

Many architectural practices will ‘force’ their ideas onto the Client without considering the exact brief from the Client. We are very focused on Client ‘hands on’ design, amalgamated with our knowledge and experience over many years, we will guide them, to design the home they deserve and dream off.

We are experienced in contemporary designs through to traditional facades which can be seen from our projects page.

Planning Application

There are generally two applications to be made within the process of getting planning permission and building your home.

The first application will be a Planning application. Once the planning permission is approved, then we make a Building Control application. This contains working drawings, specifications, structural engineers details and energy report.

We will describe the Planning application process first.

1. You will contact our Office for your initial free consultation

2. Within this meeting, we will assess your situation in relation to the Planning Policy Statements.

3. After this meeting we will provide a written quotation for our services and professional fees.

4. Once you have accepted this breakdown of services and fees letter, we can start the process of designing your dream home.

5. We will arrange to visit your site and in conjunction with yourself we will decide a programme of work, timelines, etc

6. We will arrange another meeting when we will take your brief and then advise you of timelines for sketch designs, etc

7. We will prepare sketch plans based in your brief.

8. We will arrange further meetings to finalise sketches before preparing planning drawings. The drawings required for the planning application are;

9. We will make the Planning application on your behalf and liaise with the various agencies within the Planning process e.g. Planning Department, Roads Service, Environmental Health Department, Historic Buildings Branch, etc.

Building Control Application

When we obtain Planning permission, we then proceed to prepare building control application drawings. These drawings are more detailed than Planning drawings. They show technical details and building regulation requirements which apply to new houses, regulations for disabled persons, fire regulations, smoke alarms, escape windows, size of floor and roof timbers, stair design, door opening widths, structural engineers details, energy report, etc.

Tendering Your project

These Building Control detailed drawings also form the basis for the Contractors to provide accurate prices. We can apply for Building Control approval and prepare contract drawings and specification at the same time.

We can tender the project to a selection of Contractors. We will examine all estimates and negotiate with Contractors to enable you to receive a competitive accurate price before commencement on site. All estimates are agreed before the sod is turned on your project. Generally the only issue which cannot be confirmed is the quality/depth of adequate load bearing stratum for receiving concrete for the foundations. This will be determined on site in conjunction with the Local Building Control Officer.

Release of Mortgage Payments for self-build

Tumilty Design is approved by many financial institutes to ‘sign off’ your plans. We are qualified to issue certificates as we have Professional Indemnity Insurance as required by the Lenders. We will inspect and issue certificates at various stages of the self-build project. This allows the mortgage company to release your stage payment monies. Normally these are at sub structure complete (foundations poured, substructure walls built and concrete floor poured), wallplate complete (wallplate is the highest point of the blockwork wall just before the roof goes on), roof complete (slates or tiles on), first fix electrics and plumbing complete and then fully dwelling fully complete. The dwelling needs to have a completion certificate issued by Building Control and our Final certificate before the Mortgage Company will release final payment.

Generally the above is an accurate reflection of the processes involved but sometimes other Professional Consultants may need involved;

For example; Ecologists Report (particularly if there is a house to replace or trees and hedges to be removed from the site) Landscape Architect may be required for planning process, Structural Engineers (provides calculations for structural items), Quantity Surveyors (provides building costs), Energy Engineers (determines heat loss from the building), air tightness test requirement, Sound Engineers (semi-detached houses, apartments), Roads/Traffic Engineer (if issues arise with the proposed entrance or parking requirements)

We liaise with all the additional Professional Consultants and we negotiate each fee and agree with the Client before each professional is appointed. The Client has no dealings with these Professional unless they want to of course. Tumilty Design takes the pressure off the Client, to make things easy for them. We are experienced in dealing with these Professionals over many years and have a trusted list of Companies and Individuals we use.