The Process
What to expect – in seven stages
At Jonathan Clements Architects, every project is different – we tailor our services to your specific requirements and budget, and we’ll talk it through in detail when we meet. But to give you an idea of what to expect, here’s a guide to the process we typically follow, broken down into seven stages.
Any questions? Get in touch.
01. Initial meeting
Contact us. We’ll get back to you within 24 hours for a friendly chat and to arrange a meeting to discuss the job in detail.
You won’t get the hard sell – just our expert advice and a free quote
02. Briefing
If you decide to go ahead, we’ll arrange a meeting at your property within 14 days. Here we’ll carry out a survey of your house and agree the scope of the project in more detail. Afterwards we guarantee to send you the exciting initial drawings for your feedback within 28 days.
03. Agreeing the design
Working with you, we’ll develop design proposals for your project. This usually includes proposed floor plans, building cross-sections, proposed elevations, 3D visualisations or photomontages, and sometimes physical models.
You won’t just get one idea at this stage – we’ll give you several options to consider. We’ll keep going back and forth with you until we’ve settled on a final proposal (with no extra charge to you).
We’ll get some initial construction costs to make sure we can achieve what you want within your budget.
04. Planning permission and building costs
With the design agreed, we’ll confirm the planning requirements and submit an application to your local authority. This usually takes 8 weeks to approve. We have a great relationship with planning departments across Yorkshire and Derbyshire and we have a proven success rate of obtaining planning permission for our projects.
We’ll also send the drawings to several of our trusted builder partners and arrange for them to visit you, meet you and to give you an initial building quote.
05. Detailed and technical design
Once planning permission is received, we’ll start on the technical designs. These define the precise detail and specification of every aspect of the project.
We might consult structural engineers, interior designers, builders, quantity surveyors and even your water company, all to make sure we’ve considered and planned everything ahead of the work starting.
We’ll also submit the specifications to a Building Control Authority for their approval. By taking extra care at this stage, we can avoid unforeseen delays at the construction stage.
06. Choosing your builder
Now we have everything we need to start construction – so it’s time to choose your builder. You’ll have a number of initial quotes by now from the planning stage, so now it’s time to go back to our network of highly skilled, trusted local builders to complete their tenders for the project.
We always arrange for you to meet the builders tendering for the work, because it’s important for you to feel comfortable with the people who’ll be working in your home.
(You’re under no obligation to use one of our recommended builders, and if you already have a builder in mind we’ll be happy to work with them.)
07. Construction
All the planning and design has been leading up to this – your dream space is finally getting built. We’ll make regular visits to make sure the work is being carried out to our specifications. And if you have any questions or concerns, you can get in touch with us at any point and we’ll speak to you and to the builders and get it sorted.
At the end we’ll carry out a snagging list to make sure all the work has been completed to a high standard and as agreed in the contract.
We love seeing you enjoy your new space, and getting your feedback on the process.