If your kitchen fails to qualify as an ideal space for modern cooking, a kitchen extension is a brilliant way to build your dream kitchen that lets you socialize and cook at the same time minus the struggle you have to put up with in a small sized kitchen. Proximity to the outdoors is a major consideration that makes homeowners opt for a kitchen extension in their house. This allows them to incorporate nature and sunlight in the best manner to help them build a kitchen that can turn any person into a cooking genius. Kitchen extensions also prove to be the most functional place to cook if you plan to host outdoor gatherings to mark special occasions like birthdays, anniversaries or weddings. Planning a kitchen extension takes a lot of brainstorming to channel the best ideas for creating a winning design that can accomplish all your tasks in no time. Compared to other home extension projects, a kitchen extension is a major undertaking that often paves the way for a better lifestyle, a reason that regards it as a crucial part of any home improvement project. For this reason, a clear vision of your end goal has to be brought into perspective, before you take the leap of ideating your kitchen extension work. Here’s a lowdown of some key considerations you need to be aware of before you go for a kitchen extension. 

Space and Layout

The location where you choose to build your new cooking space needs close inspection to let you think through all the possible additions to make the best use of the space. An open plan kitchen extension is what most people consider nowadays as an ideal comfort zone that best defines their cooking pursuits. Those wishing to add an open plan kitchen should choose a space overlooking the garden area. Aim to designate the corners for cabinets and spice racks. The countertop can be installed at the centre of the room. If you are going for a kitchen cum dining extension, reserve the space near the window or at the centre of your kitchen for dining. Even if you do have a centre countertop, you would still need a bit of extra counter space along the walls of your kitchen to place your kitchen appliances. Accessibility to other rooms of your house is another consideration to be attended to  for ensuring free movement in your kitchen. If parties are a regular occurrence, then your kitchen should be arranged accordingly to allow you to oversee matters in the kitchen and also attend to your guests without any kind of disturbances meeting you on the way. Bringing in a kitchen island unit is a good way to showcase your cooking skills and invite your guests to lend the finishing touches the way they want on special occasions. 

Planning Approvals

Generally speaking, you can easily build a kitchen extension without any planning permission at the rear end of your house provided that it follows the measurement specifics and design patterns of your existing house as mentioned in the planned permission rights. In case your intended plan defies the guidelines issued by the planning council or if your new extension falls in a conservation area, areas of outstanding natural beauty, national parks and world Heritage sites, prior approval may be required for which you need to apply for planning permission months in advance before your intended project start date. If your new extension has a likelihood of being built close to your neighbor’s boundary, you need to issue a party wall notice to seek the approval of your neighbor’s. Even if your extension is being built under the planned development rights requiring no permission from the authorities, you still need to contact your local Building Regulations controller to visit the site and get a purview of the extension building work to ensure it adheres to the building norms stated in the building regulations issued for your particular area.

Budget

A kitchen, being the centre stage of your family and home life, needs a solid investment. Compared to the rest of your house, this is one place where you can have full reign over the kind of equipments and features you buy that go in making your modern living dreams come to life. Right from installations, flooring, wall finishes, surface texturing to permission clearances, every step of the way to the completion of your kitchen extension needs a set figure to be spent on. A clever way to easily meet the cost considerations is to pen down the budget fixed for each task of your extension work. This includes the materials you source, charges for professional assistance and installation costs. If you are applying for planning permission, set aside a specific amount to be spent on the approvals. An average kitchen extension project may cost you  anything between £30,000 to £1.00.000 depending on the finishes and luxury additions you wish to make for instance, a kitchen island bar, bi-fold doors and glazed finishes. If you want to cut the costs, go for a minimalistic design with regular sized doors and windows instead of gigantic glass features. 

Hiring the Right contractor

Entrust a professional build contractor or an architect to get your extension project completed with no chance of having to juggle through permissions and sourcing of materials at inopportune times. Have a detailed plan of your goals ready to show to your contractor so he can enlist trusted people to get the installations of your precious kitchen accessories done. When finding the right person to keep track of the extension work, seek out a professional with a proven history of having worked on such projects. Speak to previous customers for recommendations and enlist one who can meet your expectations well within your budget. If you are looking for guidance in terms of the latest trends in kitchen extension realm, an architect with an experience of building open space kitchens is the best person to speak to. Check his credentials and past works to be clear of whether this person is the right fit for your extension project. A reliable build professional often has a portfolio ready to show to his clients, so aim to hire a professional who has earned a reputation in the field of home extensions. 

Timeline

The length of your kitchen extension work is a key player that can make or break your ideals of a perfect kitchen. Having a week by week timeline of the tasks to be undertaken would help in minimizing the mental struggle you have to endure during the course of the project. Make sure all approvals are obtained before the building team arrives and starts to work on the project. Also have several sketches of the designs and appliance placements ready to let the builders easily understand the concepts you have in mind. It may take two to three months to complete a kitchen extension and consulting an architect before devising a timeline of tasks to be completed within the set time frame would be the wisest thing to do. Notify your building regulations controller to make visits to the site on specific days to oversee the developments in construction. Ensure all materials are arranged before the day they would be required to lessen chances of delay in the work being carried out. Another round of inspection by the contractor is needed on completion of the project to make last minute revisions in the fittings of the kitchenware if any faults are detected.