House Extension Drawings in Tower Hamlets

Where in Tower Hamlets does a house extension actually get determined?

Every Tower Hamlets postcode district we draw in, the stock that dominates it and the authority that validates a house extension there. Tower Hamlets fees below are the statutory England rates for 2026, not house extension estimates.

What changes about a house extension in each part of Tower Hamlets?

Roof pitch, wall build-up and plot depth change every few Tower Hamlets streets, and each one changes what a house extension can achieve at that address.

• Spitalfields (E1) — Georgian listed townhouses, market quarter defines Spitalfields, where georgian listed townhouses set what a house extension can do. Georgian rear elevations here are usually the listed or locally listed face of the building across E1. Any Spitalfields house extension is validated by Tower Hamlets Council, with Old Spitalfields Market the usual Spitalfields reference point on the site plan.
• Whitechapel (E1) — Victorian terraces, mixed defines Whitechapel, where victorian terraces, post-war estates, new-build set what a house extension can do. The side-return infill is the classic move on these Victorian terraces — 3 m of permitted development depth plus the width of the original side passage across E1. Any Whitechapel house extension is validated by Tower Hamlets Council, with Whitechapel Gallery the usual Whitechapel reference point on the site plan.
• Bethnal Green (E2) — a house extension in Bethnal Green starts from victorian terraces, post-war estates, and Bethnal Green reads as Victorian terraces, post-war estates. The side-return infill is the classic move on these Victorian terraces — 3 m of permitted development depth plus the width of the original side passage in E2. Tower Hamlets Council assesses Bethnal Green house extensions against its own Bethnal Green character guidance, and the location plan we draw for Bethnal Green references Victoria Park.
• Bow (E3) — Victorian terraces, Georgian fragments defines Bow, where victorian terraces, georgian fragments set what a house extension can do. Georgian rear elevations here are usually the listed or locally listed face of the building across E3. Any Bow house extension is validated by Tower Hamlets Council, with Bow Bells the usual Bow reference point on the site plan.
• Mile End (E1, E3) — house extension work in Mile End means victorian terraces, post-war estates. Mile End is Victorian terraces, post-war estates. The side-return infill is the classic move on these Victorian terraces — 3 m of permitted development depth plus the width of the original side passage throughout E1. Tower Hamlets Council decides the Mile End application, and Mile End Park anchors the Mile End location plan.
• Wapping (E1W) — Georgian fragments, warehouse conversions defines Wapping, where georgian terraces, warehouse conversions set what a house extension can do. Georgian rear elevations here are usually the listed or locally listed face of the building across E1W. Any Wapping house extension is validated by Tower Hamlets Council, with St Katharine Docks the usual Wapping reference point on the site plan.
• Canary Wharf (E14) — modern high-density towers defines Canary Wharf, where modern apartments set what a house extension can do. Modern housing here is frequently covered by a planning condition removing permitted development rights across E14. Any Canary Wharf house extension is validated by Tower Hamlets Council, with One Canada Square the usual Canary Wharf reference point on the site plan.

Does Tower Hamlets planning policy restrict a house extension?

Conservation areas covering Tower Hamlets: Tower Hamlets Council runs 58, and Whitechapel Market, Fournier Street, Tredegar Square are the ones Tower Hamlets owners meet most. A house extension inside a Tower Hamlets conservation area loses permitted development, so the Tower Hamlets submission is a householder application at £548 decided in 8 weeks — not a £249 prior approval decided in 6 weeks. In Wapping Pierhead a house extension is judged on the street elevation first.

What Article 4 removes near Tower Hamlets: Article 4 for HMOs borough-wide; additional Article 4 covering office-to-residential in Canary Wharf and City Fringe. Before pricing a house extension we check whether the E1 address is inside the mapped area, because Tower Hamlets Council draws the Tower Hamlets boundary street by street rather than across the whole of Tower Hamlets.

What Tower Hamlets is built from: Georgian in Spitalfields and Wapping; Victorian industrial conversions; extensive post-war social housing; modern high-density towers in Canary Wharf and Aldgate. High heritage value in pockets (Spitalfields, Wapping), mixed with substantial regeneration areas; active planning committee. That mix decides the house extension route in Tower Hamlets more than the postcode does, and it is what a Tower Hamlets Council case officer reads first. A householder application costs £548 paid to Tower Hamlets Council direct, with 8 weeks to a decision once validated.

Which neighbouring authorities border Tower Hamlets?

• Greenwich — cross the Tower Hamlets boundary and Greenwich Council takes the house extension instead, applying 20 conservation areas of its own around SE3. We re-price house extensions at the Tower Hamlets edge because Greenwich policy and Tower Hamlets policy rarely align on house extension depth.
• Hackney — adjoining Tower Hamlets, with 29 conservation areas centred on E2. A house extension on the far side of the Tower Hamlets line is determined by Hackney Council, so the Tower Hamlets quote for house extensions is checked against Hackney guidance before it is issued.
• Newham — the Newham boundary runs against Tower Hamlets, so a house extension a street from Tower Hamlets is decided by Newham Council instead. Newham runs 10 conservation areas across E6 and its neighbours, which is why house extensions priced for Tower Hamlets are re-checked against Newham policy whenever the Tower Hamlets address sits on that edge.
• City of London — cross the Tower Hamlets boundary and City of London Corporation takes the house extension instead, applying 27 conservation areas of its own around EC1. We re-price house extensions at the Tower Hamlets edge because City of London policy and Tower Hamlets policy rarely align on house extension depth.

Sources for this Tower Hamlets house extension page: borough policies maps and conservation-area registers (2025–26), Royal Mail postcode district boundaries, the Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications) (England) Regulations, the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015 as amended, and the Party Wall etc. Act 1996.