Leasehold alterations

As a Tower Hamlet Council leaseholder, you can make changes to your home to suit your style and needs. However you must seek permission from Leasehold Services before making certain alterations to your home. This is in line with your lease terms. It also includes any Planning and Building Control approval that may be needed. 

We have a duty to consider requests for alterations from leaseholders.

We have produced a set of guidelines to help you through the application process. Please read the guidance notes before making your application. 

A leaseholder will be in breach of their lease if they make changes to their home without our written permission.  This may also have an implication on making a building insurance claim in the future. To fix this breach, they may need to restore their home to its original state. 

Alterations that require our formal permission include: 

• changing the front entrance door or a secondary means of escape door
• installation of central heating/replacement of boiler 
• any change to the internal layout of your property 
• works affecting the structure of the building 
• works affecting any services to the property, for example, electricity, gas, drainage, water 
• changing or removing any internal doors 
• rewiring 
• asbestos removal  
• replacing bathroom and kitchen units - if it alters the electrical, gas or drainage systems. 

The above is not a full list but examples of what type of alterations would require our prior consent. We strongly advise leaseholders to contact us before doing any work.

Making an application  

You need written consent for alterations from us (Leasehold Service Team). This is in addition to any necessary Planning and Building Control approvals you may require.

If your proposal is accepted, you will usually get a conditional consent letter. This letter will list conditions you must meet before we can send you full consent.

Please note, you must first get written conditional consent from us. Only then should you contact the Planning Department or Building Control. You must also ensure you meet all fire regulations where required. 

Important Information  

In the past, leaseholders needed to get Building Regulations approval from Building Control for building works. This included minor or major changes to their flat, altering its layout, or installing a new fire doorset.

This process has changed for flats in higher-risk buildings (HRBs). ‘Higher-risk’ usually means buildings with seven or more storeys or those that are 18 metres or taller. If you live in an HRB, you must now get approval from the Building Safety Regulator (BSR) before making any changes to your flat.

All applications for building works in HRBs must now go to the BSR, which is part of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). This rule applies to both minor and major changes to your flat. The BSR will handle the approval of applications, inspections, and sign-offs. Building works in an HRB cannot start until the BSR has granted approval.

If you live in an HRB and intend to carry out any alterations we would ask that you contact us to discuss or you may make an alterations application to us in the first instance. We will tell you if the works you intend to do will usually be granted by the Council. We will then advise you to submit an application to the BSR. We will issue you conditional consent for the works, however, you must not carry out any works until you receive approval from the BSR. 

If you are intending to change your boiler or carry out any other works that are health & safety related or deemed as urgent, please contact the BSR on 0300 790 6787 or email building-control.applications@HSE.gov.uk for advice. 

Please read more about the Building Safety Regulator and familiarise yourself with these new requirements and procedures.

Also, please check the building control application form for higher-risk buildings.

You can contact the BSR on 0300 790 6787.

Submitting an application

Complete an application to seek written consent carry out alterations to a leasehold property.

You will need to be clear in your application exactly what you are planning to do, who and how you will carry them out. Your contractor should be an approved contractor (e.g. for gas appliances) and should have a public indemnity insurance cover. 

Getting consent

To carry out an alteration to your property, you have to receive written conditional consent from us (Leasehold Services) in the first instance. 

• Ensure your alteration is only proposed to the part of the building/land under your ownership

• Provide full details of the works  (including plans, before and after drawings, and measurements where possible) you intend to carry out 

• Provide details of a reputable contractor who will carry out the works. Your contractor should have public indemnity insurance of up to £1million and must be able to carry out the work to an acceptable standard that meets health and safety requirements and fire regulations. 

• Provide a Structural Engineer's report if removing internal walls (whether partition or supporting walls) and ensure that the proposed works do not cause damage or depreciation to the structure or value of the building. 

Ensure your service charge account is up to date - i.e paid up in full or there is a direct debit/standing order arrangement in place.     

• Once you receive conditional landlord's consent, you may be required to contact the Planning Department (planningandbuilding@towerhamlets.gov.uk) and Building Control Section (buildingcontrol@towerhamlets.gov.uk). You can contact them on 020 7364 5009 for further information.  If your property is in a building that has at least seven storeys or is at least 18 metres high and falls within the description of a High Rise Building (HRB), you will be required to submit an application via the Building Safety Regulator website. Please refer to 'important information' section above.  Manage a building control application for a higher-risk building - GOV.UK (call 0300 790 6787).

After you submit the application

Once we receive your application, we will contact you to take payment. Our Surveyor will go through your plans and if we require more information or further clarification from you, we will contact you.  

Once we agree to your proposed works, we would issue you the conditional consent. The consent will have a list of conditions you must meet before we can issue you full consent, such as obtaining planning permission (where required) and any other permissions required. The leaseholder is responsible for obtaining all required permissions in relation to the works they intend to carry out. If you live in a higher risk-building please refer to the 'important information' section above. Once the works are completed, you should let us know as we would usually carry out a post inspection of the works before issuing full consent. If our Surveyor is not satisfied with any part of the works, we will tell you what the issue is, and let you know what you must do to obtain full consent. 

Asbestos 

Sometimes, the alterations leaseholders carry out may impact an area of the building with asbestos. For instance, if you add sound insulation, you could disturb your property or need to enter the Council's reserved area (with our prior permission).

After getting our consent, you must hire a certified contractor to do the work and/or safely remove the asbestos.

Fees

The following fees apply for alteration applications: 

Additionally, we will charge; 

• £50 an hour for additional significant administrative work where required in relation to an application 

We will carry out a post inspection before a final consent (licence to alter) is issued. Sometimes we may have a complete Deed of Variation to your lease. 

If a leaseholder is changing their front door, while they would require our consent, they would not be required to pay an application fee. However, a post inspection fee of £140 is applicable.