Where to build it?

Conservatories have traditionally been built on the back of properties, leading out to the garden, although it is possible to have them on the side or even the front. Since they are designed to feel part of the garden they are almost exclusively built on ground floor level, although there is no real reason (apart from planning implications) why they cannot be built on an upper level, depending on the design of your house.

Different aspects bring with them different advantages and disadvantages, and careful consideration should be given to the direction of your proposed conservatory at the planning stage.

East-facing - This will get the sun in the morning so is ideal for a breakfast room. It will not overheat in the middle of the day or evening.

West-facing - This will get the sun from late afternoon onwards and provides good conditions for many plants.

North-facing - This will get angled sun at the start and end of the day and, although it will not overheat in the summer, it could be bitterly cold in the winter. Unless you are using the conservatory solely as a summer sun-room, give careful consideration to how you are going to heat it.

South-facing - This is excellent for catching the sun but will be unbearably hot in the summer with the sun overhead at the hottest time of the day. Give careful thought to ventilation and blinds.

For the purposes of deciding whether the addition of a conservatory to an existing home requires Building Regulations approval, there is no definition of what a conservatory is. If however, no separation will remain between the existing home and the new conservatory it is likely that the conservatory will be judged as an conventional extension of the home, for which Building Regulations approval will be required. :

This is the link for a useful document that the Scottish Building Standards Agency have created:

Scottish Building Standards

Please be aware that the regulations for England and Wales are different to Scotland. This is a link to the Scottish government website:

Scottish Planning Permission

Building Regulations Disclaimer

The Building Regulations content on the localconservatory.co.uk provides you with a practical level of guidance to enable you to better understand how the Building Regulations might impact on a building project you are doing or considering. This is not a definitive interpretation of the Building Regulations.

Unless you have a reasonable working knowledge of building construction it would be advisable before any work is started to obtain appropriate professional advice which is relevant to the building work you want to carry out (e.g. from an architect, a structural engineer, a building surveyor, a heating engineer or replacement window specialist) and to choose a registered builder, or a registered installer, to carry out the work.

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