You might imagine that an FAQ on an Architect’s website asking this question would only ever answer “of course!”, however that’s not what we’re going to do here.

When you think of an Architect’s role, you may immediately assume it’s just to provide a design service, but that’s only a small piece of the picture. We also steer your project through the intricacies and nuances of obtaining Planning Permission, navigating Conservation and Listed Building Status, ensuring compliance with Building Standards, and making sure that what is built by a Contractor is what was originally agreed and that your project is also documented properly so that there won’t be any nasty surprises if you were ever to sell your home in the future. An Architect is also able to manage Contracts between Clients and Contractors and act to ensure that everything is carried out legally and professionally.

An Architect ideally is providing the expertise of a professional designer, paired with knowledge of contractual and legal processes to make the daunting task of construction far more convenient, less complicated and stress free.

If you find yourself worrying that your project is too small to trouble us with, don’t fret. Our free initial consultation is designed to work out precisely what you need, but also if you even need our services.

Our free consultation is designed to achieve a few things.

1. Work out if an Architect is the right fit for your project.

2. To have a conversation about what your ambitions are and discuss how best we can help within your budget.

3. To explain the project stages we would be working through alongside rough timescales

4. Provide you an overview of the services we can provide as well as the jumping off points should you only want a partial service.

We aim to keep the initial meeting to 45 minutes or so, with no obligation to continue should you not feel like carrying on. The initial meeting is as much about giving you the chance to interview us as it is about discussing your project.

We have 6 key stages for developing a project following the initial consultation. Our service can then be tailored to suit your specific intentions, marking pre-defined jumping off points should you only desire a partial rather than a full service. Our key stages are;

1. Feasibility

2. Concept Design

3. Planning

4. Technical Design & Building Warrant

5. Construction

6. Handover

With each of these Stages comes a tangible progression closer to a finished result and we’ll be more than happy to go over each in more detail and explain what they entail with you should you have any questions.

Our fee structure is tied directly to your budget and we’ll be completely transparent in breaking down how a fee translates into hours worked. We’ll be able to give you an estimate during the initial consultation and firm everything up in a follow up fee proposal.

For determining and agreeing fees we use the Scottish Conditions of Appointment of an Architect Contract created by the RIAS (Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland). Once you're confident in continuing a project with us, we’ll sit down and agree every aspect.

There are two main hurdles that we have to clear before a project can get off the ground. These are;

• Planning Permission

• Building Warrant

Not all projects require these permissions as it depends on what you are specifically wanting to do, but it's important that we get that confirmation before getting started as it can cause issues to resolve after the fact. Part of our service is to work this with local authorities on your behalf and make sure all the correct permissions are in place and documented.

An additional consideration that isn't always well understood is Conservation Status and Listed Building Status. It's vital that we understand if your home falls within a conservation area or has a listing attached from the get go. We'll always make sure that this is checked before anything else is done.

Planning Permission is basically obtaining a green light from your local authority that what you intend to build meets certain standards of aesthetic and size while also not negatively impacting your neighbours or altering the existing character of an area too dramatically without good reason.

Without it, anyone could build anything anywhere. In the extreme, it stops a skyscraper from appearing in the middle of a village, or your next door neighbour turning their land into a scrapyard overnight. It’s about balancing your right to develop your property with the interests of the wider community.

That’s where we come in. On the surface it may sound relatively straightforward; preparing a design, drawing it and then submitting it with the Council’s planning fee. However that tends to not be the case.

Each Council have their own nuances and specific requirements for what they want to see and how they want it prepared. The types of drawings and information contained also vary depending on the application itself. There is no one stop shop approach, as every location is unique, so is the information needed to justify the viability of a proposal. Matters of conservation and listed building status are also major concerns and come with their own specific requirements. Paired with the fact that once a proposal is granted changing aspects to suit regulations and requirements that you may not have been aware of becomes potentially difficult and costly - or impossible without fundamental alterations to what was granted - the best course of action is always to utilise the services of an expert.

We’re able to navigate these issues however, and can produce a proposal which has the very best chance of being accepted and built.