Chartered architects · Design & build · England & Scotland
Drawn, approved and built. By one team.
One team for the drawings, the planning application and the build itself. Over 1,000 approved applications and more than 100 years of combined experience, working across England and Scotland.
Drawings back in 24–72 hours. Measured survey to a full set of existing and proposed drawings — 24–48 hours for a loft or extension, up to 72 hours for larger or more complex schemes.
Start your projectOne appointment
From first drawing to final key — one contract
Most building projects are run by the client, whether they realise it or not. You end up holding half a dozen separate appointments and translating between all of them. We take that job off you.
Six appointments, six diaries
- Architect — draws it
- Structural engineer — calculates the beams and foundations
- Planning consultant — submits the application
- Party wall surveyor — serves the neighbour notices
- Main contractor — builds it
- Project manager — tries to keep the other five aligned
Six contracts, six invoices, six sets of dates that were never designed to connect. When a detail turns out to be unbuildable, each one points at the one before — and the cost of settling it lands on you.
One appointment, one company responsible
You sign once. We do the rest.
- We survey, design and draw it
- We submit the planning application and handle the case officer
- We produce the building regulations package
- We appoint and pay the structural engineer under our contract
- We build it, with our own site management
- We book and attend every building control inspection
- We hand over the certificates, warranties and as-built drawings
One fixed price, one programme, one named person who knows your project from the first survey to the day you move back in. If the drawings and the build disagree, that is our problem to fix at our cost — not a bill sent to you while two firms argue.
What we do
One practice, from loft hatch to tower crane
Every project gets the same thing: a measured survey, a full drawing set, an architect who deals with the council, and — if you want it — a team who builds it.
Loft conversions
Rear dormers, hip-to-gable, L-shaped and mansard lofts. Permitted development where it works, full planning where it does not.
See loft conversions → 02 · ResidentialHouse extensions
Single and double storey rear, side return, wrap-around and basement. Householder applications and Lawful Development Certificates.
See extensions → 03 · ResidentialNew build & conversions
Infill plots, garden-land schemes, HMO and flat conversions, change of use and small residential developments.
See residential → 04 · CommercialCommercial & retail
Shopfronts, restaurants, offices, warehouses, clinics and gyms. Change of use, fit-out drawings and licensing plans.
See commercial → 05 · CorporateHigh-rise & towers
Mixed-use towers and large developments for corporate clients, including Building Safety Act gateway submissions.
See high-rise → 06 · ConsultancyPlanning applications
Householder, full, prior approval, listed building consent, appeals and retrospective applications. Submitted and managed by us.
See planning →Why clients pick us
We are the ones who answer the council's questions
Plenty of firms will draw your extension. Fewer will sit on the phone to a planning officer at 4.50pm on a Friday to keep your application moving. That is the part that decides whether you build.
Our team is made up of chartered architects, technologists, planning staff and site managers with more than 100 years of experience between them. We know which councils enforce Article 4 directions, which will accept a flat-roof dormer, and where a design and access statement has to do real work.
More about the practiceFixed fees, quoted up front
You get a written fee, a scope and a programme before anything starts. No hourly drip.
Drawings in 24–72 hours
Survey to full existing and proposed set inside three days for most residential work.
We submit and manage
Application, fee, drawings, statements and officer correspondence all handled by us.
Buildable detail
Building regulations packages your builder can price and work from, not just pretty plans.
How it works
Five steps from first call to approval
Free consultation
A 20-minute call or video walk-through. We tell you what is realistic on your site, which planning route fits, and what it will cost.
Same day or next dayMeasured survey
We visit and laser-measure the property, including levels, boundaries and anything that will affect the design.
Usually within 3–5 days of instructionExisting and proposed drawings
Plans, elevations, sections, site and location plans, drawn to the scales your council requires. Two rounds of revisions included.
24–72 hours after the surveyPlanning submission
We prepare the statements, complete the forms, submit through the Planning Portal and handle every officer query.
8 weeks for most householder and minor applicationsBuilding regulations & tender
Construction drawings, structural coordination and a specification your builder can price accurately.
2–4 weeksWhere we work
Every council in the country
We work across England and Scotland. The two have separate planning and building control systems, and local authority rules differ within each — we check yours before we draw anything.
Planning is national policy applied locally. Article 4 directions, conservation area guidance and validation lists change from council to council — we check yours against your specific address before a line is drawn.
The five stages
What that looks like in practice
One team, one programme, five stages. Every one of them is carried out by us rather than passed to someone else and hoped for.
We measure
Laser survey of the existing building. Everything after this is based on fact, not assumption.
We draw
Full existing and proposed set back to you in 24–72 hours.
We submit
Planning and building regulations handled end to end, including the officer's questions.
We build
Our own site teams and vetted trades, under a JCT contract with a fixed price and dates.
We sign off
Completion certificate, warranties, drawings pack and a snagging visit after you move back in.
Honest comparison
How we compare
There are three ways to get a project drawn and built. Here is what each one actually gives you — including where the other two are the better choice.
| Kingsgate Architects | Online drawing service | Architect + separate builder | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Site survey | Laser-measured, in person, every time | Often your own photos and measurements | In person |
| Drawings back | 24–72 hours from survey | 3–10 days | 2–6 weeks |
| Who talks to the council | We do — submission to decision | Usually you | Your architect |
| If it is refused | We revise and resubmit, or appeal | Normally a new fee | Normally a new fee |
| Building regulations | Included as a stage, with structure coordinated | Extra, or not offered | Extra |
| Who builds it | Us, if you want — same contract | You find a builder | Separate contract, separate liability |
| If drawings and build disagree | Our problem, at our cost | Your problem | Two firms, one argument, your money |
| Best for | Anyone who wants one accountable team | A simple job on a tight budget where you will project manage | Highly bespoke design where you want competitive tendering |
Comparison describes typical market offerings and our own standard scope. Individual firms vary — always compare written scopes, not headline prices.
What we commit to
Six things we put in writing
Fixed fee before we start
Written scope, written price, written programme. Third-party costs listed separately with estimates against each.
Drawings in 24–72 hours
From the completed survey, in working days. Larger schemes get a firm date at the fee stage instead of a promise we cannot keep.
A reply the same working day
A named contact who knows your project. Not a ticket number and not a call centre.
Two revisions included
Built into every fee as standard, because the first draft is a conversation, not an invoice.
We will tell you no
If we do not believe your scheme can be approved as described, you hear it on the first call — before you have paid us anything.
One contract if we build
Design and build under a single JCT contract, so there is no gap between the drawings and the work on site.
In their words
What clients say
Verified reviews from people whose projects we have finished.
Free 20-minute consultation
Ready to see your drawings?
Send us the address and a sentence about what you want to build. We will come back with a fixed fee, a programme and the planning route we would take.