Conservatories & Orangeries in Nottingham

Conservatory and Orangery Styles

• Lean-to. One slope running down from the house wall. It fits under low eaves, suits bungalows and is usually the simplest build.
• Victorian. A faceted front rising to a ridge. The rounded outline softens a flat rear wall.
• Edwardian. Square or rectangular, so no floor is lost to angled corners.
• Gable. An upright front like the end wall of a house, which lifts the ceiling.
• P-shape. A lean-to joined to a Victorian or Edwardian section, for a wider rear with two areas.
• Orangery. Brick piers, less glass in the walls and a glazed lantern in the middle, so it reads as part of the house.

When a Conservatory Makes Sense

Before you ask for quotes, think about which way the garden faces, since a south-facing glass room gets warm in summer, and how you'll heat it, since that affects building regulations. For a room you'll use all year, an orangery or a solid roof is usually the better start.

Do You Need Planning Permission for a Conservatory?

Planning treats a conservatory like any other single-storey extension. On a house, most can go ahead under permitted development (GPDO Class A) if they stay within these limits:

• To the rear. No more than 3 m beyond the original rear wall, or 4 m on a detached house, and no more than 4 m high. A longer one, up to 6 m (8 m detached), can go through the council's prior approval process, but not in a conservation area.
• Near a boundary. Eaves no higher than 3 m if the conservatory is within 2 m of the boundary.
• Garden cover. Together with any other extensions and outbuildings, it mustn't take up more than half the garden and grounds around the original house.
• To the side. Single storey and no wider than half the original house. In a conservation area, a side conservatory isn't permitted development at all.
• Flats and maisonettes. There are no permitted development rights, so a conservatory needs a planning application.

Unlike other extensions, a conservatory doesn't have to match the house's materials. Some homes have lost these rights through a planning condition, so check first. More in our conservatory planning rules.

Building Regulations and the Conservatory Exemption

Approved Document L exempts a conservatory from the energy-efficiency rules when all five of these hold:

• it is at ground level;
• it has a floor area that does not exceed 30 m²;
• its glazing meets Part K, the safety-glazing rules;
• the wall, door or window between it and the house is kept, or replaced if it's taken out;
• the heating system of the house isn't extended into it.

Taking out the doors to open the conservatory into the kitchen, and not replacing them, breaks the fourth condition. Plumbing in a radiator from the house's central heating breaks the fifth. Separately, the Planning Portal says any new structural opening between a conservatory and the house needs building regulations approval, even when the conservatory itself is exempt.

This is general information, not advice. Check with your council's planning or building control team before work starts.

Conservatory Roof Replacement

An old polycarbonate roof can discolour, rattle in the rain and leave the room too hot or too cold. Replacing it keeps your existing frames and base. There are two main routes.

• A glass roof. New sealed units, often with coatings that cut solar heat and hold warmth in.
• A solid roof. An insulated structure with a plastered ceiling inside and lightweight tiles outside, often keeping a few glazed panels or a lantern for light. The room feels more like part of the house.

LABC, citing a 2013 government letter, says a solid roof that significantly reduces the amount of glazing can end the conservatory's exempt status, so the work may need building regulations approval. The frames and base also have to carry more weight. Ask whoever quotes whether building control will be involved and who arranges it.

Conservatories & Orangeries in Nottingham's Suburbs

Nottingham City has 33 conservation areas, and the councils around it have their own, including in Ruddington, Bingham, Keyworth, Calverton and Beeston. Inside a conservation area, a side conservatory needs an application and the longer rear extension route isn't open. West Bridgford, Radcliffe on Trent, Arnold, Carlton and Burton Joyce have no conservation area, so the standard limits apply there. If you live in Mapperley, the area is split between Nottingham City Council and Gedling Borough Council, so check which council covers your street.

What Changes the Price

• Style and size. A lean-to is simpler than a P-shape or an orangery.
• The base. New foundations and dwarf walls, or reusing an existing base.
• Frame material. uPVC, aluminium or timber.
• Glass or solid roof. And the glass specification.
• Doors to the garden. French or bifold doors add to the frame work.
• Clearing the old structure. Taking down an old one, and access to the garden.
• Paperwork. A planning application or building control fees, where the job needs them.

Typical UK figures for each style are in conservatory costs.

How It Works

1. Tell us the style you have in mind, or the conservatory roof you want replaced, and roughly how big it is. 2. We pass your enquiry to an independent local installer, and we may be paid for the introduction. 3. They visit, measure and quote you direct. There's no obligation.

We don't design, make or build anything, and we don't inspect or approve the installer who quotes. Our guide on how to choose an installer covers the checks worth making before you sign.

Our scope. We pass on enquiries for conservatories, orangeries and conservatory roofs. We don't handle garden rooms or house extensions.

Related Services

See also bifold doors onto the garden, and uPVC windows for the rest of the house.

Areas We Cover

West Bridgford, Radcliffe on Trent, Bingham, Keyworth, Arnold and Burton Joyce. see all service areas