Regions we cover
LINX Design & Build takes on architecture, planning, extensions, loft conversions, renovations and new builds across Essex, including Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock. One in-house team designs each project, secures approval from the relevant council and builds it, starting with a free survey and a fixed-price quote.
Tell us about your project — we'll come back with next steps and a time for a free survey.
Design & build
Essex has 12 district, borough and city councils, plus two unitary authorities, Southend-on-Sea City Council and Thurrock Council. Much of the south and west of the county, from Epping Forest and Brentwood to Basildon and Castle Point, lies in the Metropolitan Green Belt, while the north-east includes the Dedham Vale National Landscape on the Suffolk border.
Many Essex councils refer to the Essex Design Guide, first published in the 1970s, when assessing the form and detailing of new homes and extensions. North Essex towns such as Saffron Walden, Coggeshall and Thaxted have timber-framed buildings, some with decorative pargeting, while the south of the county has extensive 1930s and post-war housing, including the new towns of Harlow and Basildon.
South Essex towns such as Southend-on-Sea, Leigh-on-Sea, Westcliff and Rayleigh have Edwardian terraces, 1930s semis and bungalows, many of which suit loft conversions and rear extensions. Brentwood, Shenfield, Billericay and Chelmsford mix Victorian and interwar houses with larger detached homes, while Harlow and Basildon were built as post-war new towns. In north Essex, Saffron Walden, Coggeshall, Thaxted and Colchester have timber-framed, weatherboarded and pargeted buildings, many of them listed.
Our services
Our architects design for Essex's timber-framed villages, 1930s suburbs and post-war new towns, with reference to the Essex Design Guide where councils use it.
Find out more 02We prepare applications to all 14 Essex planning authorities, including Green Belt, conservation-area and listed building cases.
Find out more 03Rear and wrap-around extensions suit 1930s semis in Southend, Leigh-on-Sea and Chelmsford, while Green Belt homes around Brentwood and Epping need extensions that stay proportionate to the original house.
Find out more 04Hip-to-gable and dormer lofts suit Essex semis, and bungalow conversions are a practical way to add bedrooms in towns such as Rayleigh, Leigh-on-Sea and Canvey Island.
Find out more 05We renovate Victorian and interwar homes and older timber-framed buildings, using suitable materials and applying for listed building consent where needed.
Find out more 06We design and build replacement dwellings and new homes, factoring in Green Belt policy, flood risk and the Essex Coast RAMS contribution from the start.
Find out morePlanning
How it works
We visit, measure up and talk through what you want to build and what the site allows.
Our in-house team draws the scheme and handles planning or a Lawful Development Certificate, plus Building Regulations.
You get an itemised, fixed price in writing before any work starts.
One team builds it, keeps you updated weekly and hands over with a 10-year structural guarantee.
800+ projects completed since 2017 · 4.9★ from 500+ reviews · See our starting prices
Questions
Usually, yes, within limits. Green Belt policy allows extensions that are not disproportionate additions to the original building, and Brentwood Borough Council and Epping Forest District Council each apply their own guidance on this. Permitted development rights still apply in the Green Belt unless removed, so a modest rear extension or loft conversion may not need planning permission. Larger schemes need a householder application, which we design to stay proportionate.
Not always. Many loft conversions to Southend houses can be permitted development, adding up to 40 m³ on a terraced house or 50 m³ on a semi-detached or detached house, provided dormers stay off the front roof slope and materials match. Homes in Leigh-on-Sea's and other conservation areas, flats and listed buildings need planning permission. Southend-on-Sea City Council can issue a Lawful Development Certificate to confirm the position before work starts.
Usually, with planning permission. Permitted development only allows single-storey side extensions, so a two-storey extension at the side of a semi in Chelmsford, Brentwood or Billericay needs a householder application. Councils typically want the upper floor set back from the front and the roof set below the main ridge, so the house does not visually merge with its neighbour, known as a terracing effect. Clay soils in much of Essex also affect foundation depth.
We give each Essex client a fixed-price quote after a free survey, rather than a per-square-metre estimate. The price depends on the design, the existing structure, foundations, drainage, access and the specification you choose. Factors common in Essex, such as deeper foundations on clay soils near trees, flood-resilient construction in coastal areas or timber-frame repairs on older buildings, are included in the quote from the start.
Householder applications have an 8-week statutory determination period from validation, whichever of the 14 Essex authorities decides them. Prior approval for a larger single-storey rear extension is decided within 42 days. Where a project is permitted development, a Lawful Development Certificate is a separate application that gives certainty before work starts. Green Belt and listed building cases can take longer. We confirm the build programme once the approvals are in place.
We take on projects across Essex, including Chelmsford, Brentwood, Shenfield, Billericay, Basildon, Epping, Loughton, Buckhurst Hill, Harlow, Saffron Walden, Braintree, Colchester and Maldon, as well as Southend-on-Sea, Leigh-on-Sea, Rayleigh and Thurrock. Each project begins with a free survey and a fixed-price quote from our in-house team covering design, planning approvals and the build.