I do not understand why I cannot raise the roof ?

[mamatomany]

We live in a semi which is only detached at the front of the property, from the sides and back ie where I would want a loft conversation it is not attached at all to the neighbours house so why I can I not raise it 6" so I can stand up in my loft conversion rather than lowering my ceilings which I think will look shit ?
Am not happy :(

It will be to do with the 'right to light' of neighbouring properties, the planning rule is all applications must be approved UNLESS there is a reasonable planning objection/reason to refuse.
Have you submitted an application and had it refused?

surely the roof covers both properties though? how can you raise up only part of it.

Am a little confused by your description though so maybe I'm missing something.

You possibly can do it if you get planning permission.

Have you actually applied for planning permission or have you just been told you can't do it under permitted development?

That just means that you can't automatically do it. Not that you can't do it at all. And it's nothing to do with how you are attached - it would apply even if you had a fully detached house. I suppose it's to stop people buying 2 storey houses and then adding 3 storeys on top without planning permission and pissing off their neighbours.

No i've not applied just had a few quotes from loft conversion companies and i cannot understand why they want to lower the ceilings rather than raise the roof.
If you imagine a semi detached house, the roof is shared on one side but the other side is an extension so nowhere near the other house and the neighbour on the otherside is a house and we are a bungalow so if anything they block our light not the other way round.
Can I just apply on my own for everything in my wildest dreams I'd like and see what happens ? I'd been relying on these builders to make suggestions and if they didn't assumed it wouldn't be possible.

Ok well I guess they've gone for the route that they know will get through - rather than suggesting something that might be refused at planning (and then you would be pissed off and they might end up losing your business if you decided not to proceed). Also they might not be experienced in planning permission - most loft conversions are done within permitted development so possibly they're just trying to stick with what they know.

I wouldn't just apply blindly - for one thing you need drawings and stuff, and for another it can be expensive if you apply and then get refused and then have to reapply and all that.

But it would definitely be worth having a chat to your planning officer about what, in theory, they might allow and what you should take into account. Then you can go back to your loft conversion peeps and say "This is what I want - are you happy to deal with planning permission?"

Raising a roof is far more difficult, distruptive and expensive than lowering a ceiling. Also brings in planning issues which lead to time delays. Builders prefer to quote for things they think are more likely to happen than to quote for what they think are fishing expeditions/dreams.

Ask an architect.

Architect Your Home do piecework so you could juts get them to draw up some plans.

They are planning to lower the ceiling in your downstairs rooms so that you have more wall height in the attic?

Yes that's it.
The roof will need dormers any way so I can't see that either option is easy or cheap.

Thanks for the recommendations, I'll google architect your home, I just don't want to spend £20k on something shite only to find for £21k I could have had something decent.

talk to your planning officer first though - it's free, and it might save you wasting money - there's no point in drawing up plans that would never be allowed in a month of sundays.

honestly - loft companies have a one-size-fits-all. you don't necessarily have to lower ceilings to get the height in a loft conversion. speak to an architect (who train for 7 years!) for other ideas and suggestions

Very common to lower ceilings to fit in loft conversions - raising roof hellishly expensive even if you can get it through planning. I've seen the lowering of ceilings done a few times and I'm not sure overall it would add value to a property. You end up with very low ceilings in the bedrooms.

Did it look rubbish, be honest ?

Definately give the planning department a ring first...as I think there is a strong possibility that you're going to have to go through planning if you're thinking of raising the roof.

Depending on what kind of loft conversion you're after - it will be more expensive to raise the roof - but if you were going to take it off and replace anyway ( if you were going for a mansard roof for example) then it's worth investigating.

It really depends on how high your ceilings were originally - the ones I have seen were victorian cottages and yes looked awful.

IME lowering the ceilings for a loft conversion is really common.

Raising the roof would be a huge huge job.

Yes you will definitely need planning permission to increase the height of your roof.

Look at the Planning Portal here.

It is extremely unlikely to be granted if you're in a semi. Semis are, after all, meant to be a pair.

The ceilings are about 8'6" and we'd loose 6"'s.

there is a huge amount of work involved in raising a roof, including temporary ties across the property to stop the walls from wanting to fall outwards whilst the work is done (the roof ties all the walls together) as well as investigations to the foundations to ensure that they can take the extra weight of the additional brickwork/stonework and the possible strengthening required if they aren't.

Also, as others have said, the planning process is much more complicated as you are altering the look of the outside of the property.

I also agree that companies that offer a "full" design and planning service, are usually working within the constraints that mean planning permission isn't required, however, in over 20 years as a structural engineer, the need to lower the existing ceilings to accommodate a loft conversion only happened once, and the costs of that were deemed prohibitive by the client. the usual process is to raise the ties within the roof trusses to give the required headroom. As it's a bedroom usually, the minimum required is, iirc, 2m, which can usually be achieved.

I would suggest you speak to both an architect and a structural engineer to get a better idea of what is and isn't possible, as it;s really difficult to comment on these issues without actually seeing what you are dealing with!

also, I'm struggling to picture a bungalow attached to a regular two storey semi?

and also, are you meaning that you want to build on top of an existing single storey extension? or convert the bungalow's pitched roof?

Can't visualise it myself, either.

I would expect the planners to be interested in the look of the pair of semis and that what you do does not make the whole thing look lopsided. Although you are interested in the use of the inside of the property, they must consider what it looks like to the rest of the world, and any precedent it might set. Planning mistakes are there for a very long time....remember the sixties architecture?

No no no, they are both bungalows lol
But imagine the original bungalow goes back so far and the 2 are joined along that seem for want of a better description and then there is a huge extension on the back of one bungalow not the other.
The precedent in the street has already been set, everyone has dormer windows, well three at least but I don't know those people to go and have a nosy around unfortunately.

from my experience, because bungalows have a large plan area, the height of the roof is generally much taller than the roof of a regular two storey house, and as such have much more generous headroom in the attic space allowing for a conversion without major structural alterations like raising the roof/lowering ceiling ties. also, other properties having been converted is a pretty good indicator that it's a pretty straightforward job. It may alos be possible to raise the collar ties in the roof rather than having to lower the floor.

Talk to a local architect, or ask a neighbour if you can have a look, or go look round one that has been converted and is for sale

You cannot stand in the loft Crispy and the loft conversion people suggested lowering the ceilings for £20k. I'm just worried I'll ruin the house for what might only be a few years benefit, maybe we should move after all.
Thanks for all the advice, do appreciate it.