Skip to main content

About your property

Information for Leaseholders regarding heating and hot water, pest infestation, buildings insurance and subletting your home.

Alterations

You may want to make changes to your home to suit your style and needs, but please make sure you get our written permission before going ahead with any alterations to your home. 

If you don’t apply for permission you will be in breach of your lease and we could take legal action. You may also be required to amend any unacceptable alterations. 

  1. How to apply for alterations
  2. List of alterations that require formal permission
  3. List of alterations unlikely to receive approval
  4. Requirements when carrying out alterations

How to apply for alterations

Please download and complete the application form for alterations and send it to us at the address below or by email: [email protected] 

Leasehold operations, 137 Lupus Street, London, SW1V 3HE

You can also apply for Alterations approval by submitting our online application form.

Please note, we advise you not to schedule your contractors until after you have received Conditional Approval for works.

Application to change fire door

You also require our formal permission if you are planning on changing your front entrance door or a secondary means of escape door. You will need to download and complete the ‘Application to change fire door’ which can be found on the right hand side of this page. Once your application is received, we will advise you on progress and any conditions that may apply. 

Associated costs and how to pay

The cost of processing our standard application for most types of work is £550.00, however certain minor works such as changing your boiler, changing your front door or upgrading your consumer unit are charged at £100.00.

Please note that the application fee of £550.00 includes a mandatory £150.00 fee for the Council to carry out an asbestos survey within your property. On receipt of your application, if we determine that your scope of work does not require this test, we will offer you a refund of this additional cost.

Payment for our alterations fee can be made by including a cheque with your application, made payable to 'City of Westminster'. Alternatively, you can call us on 0800 358 3783 to make payment by debit/credit card.

Dependent on the type of work you are carrying out, you will either be provided a Letter of Consent on completion of the work or a Licence for Alterations. There are no additional costs involved for providing a Letter of Consent, however there is a legal fee payable for a Licence for Alterations which is currently £800.00. Please note that this cost could increase if a Deed of Variation is required (usually applicable if the work is carried out to something which is not demised to the property such as erecting an extension) which costs £1,000. Please note that the fee for the Licence for Alterations or the Deed of Variation may increase if the matter becomes protracted. 

Alterations that require our formal permission:

  • works affecting the structure of the building
  • works affecting any services to the property, for example; electricity, gas, drainage, water
  • installation of central heating / replacement of boiler
  • any change to the internal layout of your property
  • erection of a conservatory
  • rewiring
  • new kitchens and bathrooms
  • changing or removing any internal doors
  • asbestos removal 
  • replacing kitchen and bathroom units - as long as it does not include gas and electrical works or work to the drainage
  • the installation of a satellite dish -  this requires approval from the estate office and Westminster City Council’s planning department

Alterations that are unlikely to receive our approval:

  • installation of sky-lights to flat roofs
  • installation of fire curtains
  • fitting wooden floors and hard floor coverings
  • the installation of more than two bathrooms per dwelling
  • the installation of a douche
  • the relocation of a kitchen or bathroom over a bedroom
  • replacement of windows

Requirements when carrying out alterations:

  • habitable rooms must remain enclosed
  • habitable rooms must be minimum 6.5M2 in size
  • you may only install one macerator per dwelling
  • you must carry out the required asbestos removal/containment work as outlined in our survey before works begin

Where alterations or extensions have been carried out without landlord's consent, you should be aware that in the event of a major incident you may not be fully covered. If you are unsure if the level of cover is adequate, you are advised to arrange for the flat to be surveyed and valued for insurance purposes by a RICS qualified surveyor. Where we receive written requests for a chance in the fire valuation we will consider them. Please note that Insurance cover runs for a full financial year and no changes affecting the premium can be made until the next renewal date.

If you have any queries regarding the level of insurance provided, please email [email protected] or write to Insurance Section, Town Hall, 8 Hornton Street, London W8 7NX.  

If you have any questions regarding alterations contact us on 0800 358 3783.
 

Potential consequences of not gaining approval

Failure to obtain permission to carry out works to your property is a breach of the terms of your lease. Carrying out works without receiving our permission can result in the following:

  • You will be told to stop works and make an application; you will not be able to continue with works until we have issued Conditional Approval for your alterations.
  • If Conditional Approval is not possible, we will ask you to reinstate your property to how it was before the works were conducted. This will be at your own cost.
  • If the works you carry out cause any damage to any other properties or to any of the communal areas, for example causing a leak, the remedial works carried out to resolve will also be payable by yourself.  This can be extremely costly depending on the severity of the damage.
  • Unauthorised alterations can also be an issue when you decide to sell your property. If you do not have the appropriate Letter of Consent or License for Alterations for the works you have undertaken, this will be flagged up in the conveyancing process. Any purchaser will be responsible for the breach and all remedial works upon the assignment of the lease.

We advise all leaseholders to make an application before carrying out any works. We want our leaseholders to feel happy and proud of their homes and to ensure all works are undertaken safely and in accordance with the appropriate building and safety regulations.

 

Related documents

Document
Alterations application form
Alterations application form PDF, 245.4 KB, 10 pages
Document
Alterations application fire doors
Alterations application fire doors PDF, 546.77 KB, 6 pages
Document
Miscelleneous sales application form
Document
Leaseholder handbook
Leaseholder handbook PDF, 10.58 MB, 85 pages

Published: 8 January 2021

Last updated: 11 March 2024