Luxury Builders
in Sevenoaks

Prime residential construction in Sevenoaks

Crown Building works at the top of the London market, and Sevenoaks is core territory for our team. The projects in our published case studies were delivered under exactly the constraints that define this part of London. Protected fabric, exacting consents, discreet site conduct and clients who judge the result at touching distance.

We do not operate at volume. We compete on execution. Meticulous programming, a trusted specialist supply chain and senior management present on site throughout are the baseline for every commission we accept in Sevenoaks. The standard does not change with the scale of the project.

What we build in Sevenoaks

Our residential work spans the full scope of high end building. We deliver architecturally distinctive new build homes, private residence refurbishments and structural reconfigurations, single and multistorey extensions, basement excavations, listed and period property works, and the bespoke joinery and interiors that define a finished home. Each project is delivered as design and build or contractor only, with Crown appointed as your prime residential main contractor, and transparent, itemised pricing from the outset. Commercial occupiers are served by the same teams through our commercial fit out division, and clinical and wellness premises through our healthcare and specialist environments team.

The Wildernesse estate's private roads and Kippington's substantial villas anchor the top of the market, with the old town's listed and conservation area houses close behind. Sevenoaks briefs mirror our Hertfordshire home turf: private residence refurbishment of period properties, large extensions, basements and replacement dwellings on established plots. Delivered to a specification set by London, because that is where most owners' expectations were formed. Green belt and conservation constraints reward early, well argued planning strategy, which we build into preconstruction as standard.

Areas we serve

We work across the Sevenoaks district: the town, Wildernesse and Kippington estates, Chipstead, Seal, Otford and Brasted. Plus Westerham and Chislehurst's direction. You can see our full coverage, London within the M25 and a fifteen mile radius of our Watford headquarters, on our areas we cover page.

Ninety three per cent Green Belt, and a fifty per cent ceiling

Sevenoaks is 92.9 per cent Green Belt as at 31 March 2025 on the Government's own published figures, second only to Tandridge in England and far above any other Kent district. In practice that means Green Belt policy applies to almost every property in the district, and the number that governs an extension is the 50 per cent test under Policy GB1.

An extension is appropriately proportioned if it produces a floorspace increase of no more than fifty per cent above the original dwelling, measured externally. Original means as at 1 July 1948, or as first built if later. The fifty per cent is cumulative across every previous extension and alteration, not fifty per cent per application, and outbuildings within five metres of the house count towards it. Policy GB4 applies the materially larger test to replacement dwellings. And the Council's Green Belt SPD is explicit that a scheme can still be refused as disproportionate on design grounds even below fifty per cent.

The district has been without an up to date plan for some time. The 2019 plan was found not legally compliant on the Duty to Co-operate in March 2020, the Council's judicial review was rejected in November 2020, and the plan was formally withdrawn on 15 November 2022. Note the distinction: it failed on legal compliance, not on soundness, and the withdrawal came two years after the finding. Decisions are made on the Core Strategy adopted 22 February 2011 and the Allocations and Development Management Plan adopted 17 February 2015, with a new plan at Regulation 19 stage and examination expected in 2027.

Sevenoaks does have a basement policy, and it is a good one

Most Home Counties districts have nothing on basements. Sevenoaks has Policy GB2, and it works in the client's favour. A basement is excluded from the fifty per cent floorspace allowance entirely, provided it does not exceed the footprint of the original 1948 dwelling, is situated entirely underground with no part visible externally, has no external windows, entrances or exits, and the building above is not artificially raised above natural ground level to accommodate it. The supporting SPD confirms this restricts basements to single storey underground and rules out lightwells if you want the exclusion.

Where a basement fails any of those tests its floorspace counts towards the fifty per cent cap, which on most houses ends the scheme. Where it succeeds, the Council may remove permitted development rights for further extensions by condition to prevent the house becoming unreasonably large. Two things GB2 does not require: there is no percentage of garden cap, no distance from boundary rule and no depth in metres limit; and there is no Basement Impact Assessment regime of the Camden or Kensington type. No hydrogeology, no structural stability report, no construction traffic management plan as a matter of local policy. Do not tell a Sevenoaks client they need a BIA because the policy says so, because it does not.

The National Landscape is what actually restricts permitted development

Over sixty per cent of the district lies within either the Kent Downs or the High Weald National Landscape. The rebrand from Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty was a change of name only; the legal designation is unchanged. What did change is the statutory duty, which since 26 December 2023 requires authorities to seek to further the purpose of conserving and enhancing natural beauty rather than merely have regard to it.

National Landscapes are article 2(3) land under the GPDO, and the practical consequences catch out almost everyone. Inside the designation there are no side extensions under permitted development, no cladding of any kind, rear extensions must be single storey and are capped at four metres detached or three metres attached because the larger home extension allowance is disapplied, upward extension under Class AA is not permitted at all, and Class B is entirely unavailable, so every dormer needs planning permission. Outbuildings more than twenty metres from the house are capped at ten square metres in total.

It is worth saying what does not apply. Every Article 4 Direction verified in the district is an anti plotland control over fences, highway access and temporary uses, or at Kemsing front hard surfacing and boundary treatments. No Article 4 in Sevenoaks removes permitted development rights for extensions, windows, doors, roofs or cladding. Advice to check for an Article 4 before extending here is misdirection; it is the National Landscape restrictions and the Green Belt fifty per cent that bite. Alongside those, the district has 41 conservation areas with eight in Sevenoaks town alone, over 1,650 listed buildings, and eleven per cent irreplaceable ancient woodland against a UK average of two. Every tree in a conservation area over 7.5cm diameter at 1.5m is protected, requiring six weeks' written notice under section 211, which routinely catches driveway, extension and basement schemes.

Speak to us about your Sevenoaks project

If you are planning a refurbishment, basement or new build in Sevenoaks, call us on 020 3675 3999 or book a free consultation here. Every enquiry is handled by a director.

Frequently asked questions

Where is Crown Building based?

Crown Building's registered office is at Unit 324-B, The Wenta Business Centre, Colne Way, Watford, WD24 7ND. We work throughout London within the M25 and across Hertfordshire and the Home Counties.

Which areas around Sevenoaks do you cover?

We cover Sevenoaks town, the Wildernesse and Kippington estates, Chipstead, Seal, Otford, Brasted and Westerham.

Do you cover Kent from a Watford base?

Yes, for substantial commissions we operate across the M25 corridor. Site management is structured accordingly, with a dedicated site manager present daily and senior oversight throughout.