4 Victoria Road, Harborne
Lapworth Architects secured planning consent for the extension and refurbishment of 4 Victoria Road in Harborne, Birmingham. The property is a semi-detached Arts and Crafts-style home within a varied residential street, set slightly higher than its neighbour and defined by long gardens and mature boundaries. The brief was to enlarge the house while preserving its architectural language and relationship with adjoining properties.
The commission followed an earlier prior-approval consent for a six-metre-deep single-storey rear extension. That approval provided the planning context for a revised application introducing a two-storey rear extension with a basement level, raised terrace and associated landscaping. Our design developed the original form of the dwelling without altering its scale on the street. The massing steps down toward the garden, and the new elements read as part of the existing structure rather than additions to it.
Materials and proportions were matched carefully to the host building. Red brickwork, clay roof tiles and timber joinery continue the rhythm of the original house. Detailing at eaves, window heads and boundaries reflects the simple craft quality typical of Harborne’s Arts and Crafts houses. The extension provides additional family living space opening onto the garden, with the raised terrace linking directly to the lower lawn through new steps and screened edges.
The planning submission addressed daylight and privacy through measured analysis under Birmingham City Council’s 45-Degree Code. The lower level of neighbouring plots helped to mitigate any perceived impact. To safeguard amenity, obscure-glazed screens of 1.8 metres were specified to both sides of the terrace. The proposal was assessed against the Birmingham Design Guide SPD 2022 and the National Planning Policy Framework and was approved in July 2025. The council’s report concluded that the extension would preserve the character of the host dwelling and wider area.
All drawings and documentation were prepared through UK Planning Gateway to maintain accuracy and consistency across submissions. The same workflow supports Lapworth’s wider work across Birmingham, ensuring council-ready applications and clear communication with design teams.
For readers searching for architects in Harborne or architects in Birmingham, this scheme reflects Lapworth Architects’ approach to domestic design.
We always aim to be thoughtful in scale, rooted in context and carefully detailed to preserve neighbourhood character. From family homes in Harborne to listed properties in Edgbaston, our work focuses on clarity, proportion and long-term use.
