If you own a terraced house in East Ham, you probably know its limits: a narrow kitchen beside the side passage, a loft used only for storage and one bathroom for the whole household. Omni Builders are builders in East Ham who turn that unused roof space, side return and tired interior into rooms that fit the way you live now.
As building contractors in East Ham, we work across E6 for homeowners and landlords, handling the building work and the trades that go with it: lofts, extensions, renovations, plumbing, heating, electrics and decorating. As a construction company in East Ham that manages the whole job, we give you one written quote and one point of contact, and check planning, building regulations and party walls before anything starts. If you are looking for local builders in East Ham who explain what your house can and cannot take, start with a free site survey.
East Ham sits in the London Borough of Newham, and planning applications and building control for the area are handled by Newham Council. Most of it falls within the E6 postcode, which runs from the streets around the High Street and East Ham station down towards Beckton, where the housing is much newer.
The houses
Most of East Ham is Victorian and Edwardian terraces in long, regular rows. Many have a two-storey back addition, the outrigger, with a narrow strip of yard beside it. That strip is the side return, and it is why so many East Ham kitchens are long and thin. Front gardens are usually shallow, and the outrigger often has its own smaller roof.
Planned around the house, not just the job
We plan every project around the age, layout and roof of the house it is in — checked at your free survey before you commit to anything.
What that means for building work
Lofts
The main roof is usually too low for a comfortable room on its own, so most conversions add a rear dormer. Adding a second dormer over the outrigger creates an L-shape, which often gives space for a bedroom and a shower room.
Ground floor
Infilling the side return, or wrapping an extension around the outrigger, turns a galley kitchen into a full-width kitchen and dining space.
Party walls
Almost every project touches a wall shared with a neighbour, so party wall notices are part of the plan from the start.
Period details
Sash windows, cornicing, ceiling roses, decorative tiled paths and chimney breasts survive in many houses. We note what is worth keeping at the survey.
Access
With no side access to the garden, materials and waste usually come through the house, so floors and hallways need protecting.
Older services
In houses not updated for many years, wiring, pipework and drains may be close to original, so we check them before pricing a renovation.
02The East Ham line
Popular Projects in East Ham
Lofts & extensions lineRenovation & outdoor line
These projects suit East Ham's terraced housing:
Stop 01
Side return extensions in East Ham
Filling the passage beside the outrigger to widen the kitchen, often under a glazed roof.
Stop 02
Wrap-around extensions in East Ham
Side return and rear extension combined into one open-plan space.
Stop 03
L-shaped loft conversions in East Ham
Dormers over the main roof and the outrigger, often fitting a bedroom with its own shower room.
Stop 04
Dormer loft conversions in East Ham
A single rear dormer where the outrigger roof is left as it is.
Stop 05
Full house renovations in East Ham
Rewiring, heating, replastering and a new kitchen and bathroom.
Stop 06
Period property restoration in East Ham
Repairing original features, from sash windows to fireplaces, rather than stripping them out.
Stop 07
Basement conversions in East Ham
Where a house was built with a cellar, turning it into a usable room with proper waterproofing.
Stop 08
Landlord gas safety certificates in East Ham
The annual gas safety check that landlords must arrange, carried out by Gas Safe registered engineers, as the law requires.
03Planning & permits
Planning Permission in Newham
Newham Council decides planning applications for East Ham. The answers below give the national rules for houses in England. Flats and maisonettes have no householder permitted development rights, and the rules are restricted in conservation areas, under Article 4 directions and for listed buildings. We check your address at the survey.
Permit check01 / 06
Usually not
Do I need planning permission for a loft conversion in Newham?
Usually not, for a house, if the conversion stays within permitted development. On a terrace that means no more than 40 cubic metres of extra roof space (50 on a semi-detached or detached house), no dormer on the roof slope facing the road, materials similar to the existing roof, and any side windows obscure-glazed and fixed shut below 1.7 metres. A mansard, or any change to the front roof slope, needs planning permission. We check with Newham Council whether an Article 4 direction or conservation area applies. See our loft conversion page for the full rules.
Permit check02 / 06
Not always
Do I need planning permission for a house extension in Newham?
Not always. A single-storey rear extension on a terraced or semi-detached house can extend up to 3 metres under permitted development, or up to 6 metres through the prior approval process, where neighbours are notified and the council decides. A single-storey side return infill can be permitted development if it stays within the side extension limits (no more than 4 metres high and no wider than half the original house), but many still need planning permission, and most wrap-around extensions do. Previous extensions count towards the limits. See our house extensions page.
Permit check03 / 06
Usually not
Do I need planning permission for a basement conversion in Newham?
Usually not, if you are converting an existing cellar into a habitable room and the outside of the house does not change. Digging a new basement, lowering the floor substantially, or adding a lightwell or external steps usually does need planning permission, and all basement work needs building regulations approval. See our basement conversions page.
Permit check04 / 06
Usually not
Do I need planning permission for a garage conversion in Newham?
Usually not, if the garage is integral or attached and the work is mainly internal, unless a planning condition removed permitted development rights when the house was built. Garages are rare on the older terraces but appear on newer housing in E6, where those conditions are worth checking. Every garage conversion needs building regulations approval. See our garage conversion page.
Permit check05 / 06
Check at survey
Do I need planning permission for a driveway in Newham?
Not for the surface itself, if it is permeable or drains onto a permeable area within your garden. A new or replacement hard surface over 5 square metres that drains onto the road needs planning permission. You also need Newham Council's consent for a dropped kerb, and on shallow terraced front gardens it is worth checking that a car would fit without overhanging the pavement before paying for any paving. See our driveways page.
Permit check06 / 06
Usually not
Do I need planning permission for an outbuilding in Newham?
Usually not, for a house, if the building is single storey, not forward of the front of the house, no more than 2.5 metres high within 2 metres of a boundary, and does not cover more than half the garden, counting other buildings and extensions. It must be used for purposes incidental to the house, not as a separate home. See our conservatories and outbuildings page.
04On-site practicalities
Building Control, Party Walls and Practicalities
Building regulations
Lofts, extensions, basement and garage conversions and structural alterations need building regulations approval, whether or not they need planning permission. Approval comes either from Newham Council's building control service or from a registered building control approver (previously called an approved inspector). Electrical work is certified through one of the routes the building regulations allow, and gas work is carried out by Gas Safe registered engineers, as the law requires.
Party walls
The Party Wall etc. Act 1996 applies to most East Ham terraced projects. Cutting into a shared wall to support a steel beam needs notice to the neighbour at least 2 months before work starts, and digging foundations within 3 metres of a neighbour's building (or 6 metres in some cases, depending on depth) needs at least 1 month's notice. We identify which notices are needed at the survey and build them into the programme.
Skips, scaffolding and parking
A skip or scaffolding on the road or pavement needs a licence from Newham Council, which we arrange where it is needed. Where a street is in a controlled parking zone, trades need permits or paid parking, which we plan for before the start date.
Rented homes
A large share of homes in East Ham are rented. Private landlords should check with Newham Council whether a property licensing scheme applies, as licence conditions can affect the work needed.
Five stops from your first message to the certificates in your hand — with one project manager the whole way.
01Step
Enquiry
Call, WhatsApp or send the form with your postcode and a few details about the job.
02Step
Free site survey
We measure up, check the roof, walls and services, and talk through what is possible.
03Step
Written, itemised quote
You receive a quote showing what is included, what is not and how payments are staged.
04Step
Approvals
We confirm whether you need planning permission, prior approval or a Lawful Development Certificate, building regulations approval and party wall notices, and arrange them before work begins.
05Step
Build and handover
One project manager runs the job, and at the end you receive the building control completion and the certificates for the work.
08Ask the local team
Frequently Asked Questions
Real questions from homeowners in East Ham, answered the way we would answer them on the phone.
Yes. We work across E6, including the streets around East Ham High Street and Beckton, and in the neighbouring parts of Newham. If you are unsure, send us your postcode and we will confirm.
Do you work for landlords and letting agents in East Ham?
Yes. We carry out repairs, refurbishments between tenancies, landlord gas safety certificates and electrical work. Tenants need the landlord's agreement before any building work.
Can you prepare the drawings and handle the planning application?
Yes. We work with architects and designers to prepare the drawings and structural calculations, and we can apply for planning permission, prior approval or a Lawful Development Certificate where your project needs one. If you already have drawings, we can price and build from them.
Do I need a party wall agreement for work on my terraced house?
If the work affects a shared wall or involves digging close to a neighbour's foundations, a party wall notice must be served. If the neighbour consents in writing, no surveyor is needed; if not, a party wall award is agreed through surveyors first.
Is the site survey really free?
Yes. The survey is free and there is no obligation to go ahead. Afterwards you receive a written, itemised quote.
Can you do several jobs at the same time?
Yes. A loft or extension is often combined with rewiring, new heating, a bathroom and decorating. One team handles all of it under one quote.
E6
Start in East Ham
Talk to Builders Who Know East Ham Houses
Tell us about your house and what you want to change, and we will arrange a free site survey and a written quote.
