Regions we cover
LINX Design & Build takes on architecture, planning, extensions, loft conversions, renovations and new builds across Kent and Medway. One in-house team designs each project, secures approval from the relevant borough, district or city 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
Kent has 12 district, borough and city councils, plus Medway Council, a unitary authority. West Kent around Sevenoaks and Dartford is largely Metropolitan Green Belt, while the Kent Downs and High Weald National Landscapes cover a large share of the county, so many homes sit in at least one protected area.
Kent's building traditions are distinctive: white weatherboarding, tile hanging, Kentish ragstone, timber-framed Wealden hall houses and converted oast houses. Extensions to these buildings need careful detailing, and many are listed or in conservation areas, from Canterbury, Faversham and Rochester to Sandwich and Tenterden.
Kent's housing includes Regency and Victorian villas in Tunbridge Wells and Sevenoaks, Victorian terraces in Canterbury, Margate, Folkestone and the Medway Towns, and 1930s semis around Dartford, Gravesend and Maidstone. Rural Kent has weatherboarded and tile-hung cottages, ragstone houses and converted oasts and barns. Terraces suit rear dormer lofts and side-return extensions, semis suit hip-to-gable conversions and wrap-arounds, and rural buildings often need extensions designed to sit quietly alongside traditional materials.
Our services
Our architects design for Kent's weatherboarded, tile-hung and ragstone buildings as well as Victorian towns and post-war suburbs, working to each council's guidance.
Find out more 02We prepare applications to all 12 Kent councils and Medway Council, including Green Belt, National Landscape, conservation-area and listed building cases.
Find out more 03Rear and wrap-around extensions suit Kent's semis and terraces, while oast houses and cottages often suit lightweight glazed or timber-clad extensions.
Find out more 04Rear dormer and hip-to-gable lofts suit terraces and semis in towns such as Maidstone, Gravesend and Margate; in the National Landscapes or conservation areas they need planning permission.
Find out more 05We renovate timber-framed houses, Victorian villas and post-war homes, using appropriate materials for older walls and applying for listed building consent where required.
Find out more 06We design and build replacement dwellings and new homes, checking Green Belt policy in west Kent and nutrient neutrality in parts of east Kent before the design is fixed.
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
Yes, in most cases, but an extension that needs planning permission must not be a disproportionate addition to the original building, and Sevenoaks District Council applies its own guidance on this. Permitted development rights still apply in the Green Belt unless removed by condition, so a modest rear extension may not need an application. Homes in the Kent Downs or High Weald National Landscapes have fewer permitted development rights. We check both designations first.
Sometimes, but it is rarely straightforward. Older Kent cottages often have low eaves, timber frames and steep clay-tiled roofs, so head height, structure and fire escape need careful assessment. Many are listed, in conservation areas or in the Kent Downs and High Weald National Landscapes, where planning permission or listed building consent is needed. For unlisted houses elsewhere, a loft conversion can usually be permitted development within 40 m³ or 50 m³ of extra roof volume.
Yes, but expect to need consent. Many converted oast houses had permitted development rights removed when they were converted, and some are listed, in which case listed building consent is needed for an extension as well as planning permission. Kent councils usually look for extensions that are clearly subservient to the original building and use suitable materials, such as weatherboarding, clay tiles or glazing. We review the listing and planning history first.
We price each Kent project after a free survey, then give a fixed-price quote for the agreed scope. The cost depends on the design, the structure and age of the house, foundations, drainage, access and the specification. Kent-specific factors, such as weatherboarding or handmade clay tiles to match an older building, or listed building requirements, are priced in from the start.
Householder planning applications to Kent's councils and Medway Council have an 8-week statutory determination period from validation. Prior approval for a larger single-storey rear extension is decided within 42 days. Listed building consent also has an 8-week period and is usually submitted alongside the planning application. Green Belt and National Landscape cases may take longer if amendments are requested. We confirm the build programme once approvals are secured.
Yes. We take on projects across Kent and Medway, including Sevenoaks, Westerham, Tonbridge, Tunbridge Wells, Dartford, Gravesend, Rochester, Chatham, Maidstone, Ashford, Canterbury, Whitstable, Faversham, Margate, Folkestone and Dover. Every project starts with a free survey at the property, followed by a fixed-price quote from our in-house design, planning and build team.