Home Improvement Tips
Wimbledon Residential Architects
AURA are a London Architecture Firm, with a wealth of experience in the Wimbledon area, having managed several residential architecture projects in Wimbledon recently.
To get a feel for the level of expertise our architects and home designers have to offer, please browse our residential architecture projects or our property developer projects. Or view our independent 3rd party reviews on Google or Houzz.
In 2019, we were voted as the “Most Trusted Residential Architecture Firm, Greater London” by Build Magazine.
Also in 2019, our Wimbledon project on Cromwell Road was voted “Best South West London Small Scale Extension & Home Transformation Project”.
We have designed projects all across Wimbledon!
Watch a timelapse video of one of our Wimbledon extensions:
Residential Architecture Projects In Wimbledon
Company Ethos
Our Vision is to:
Maximise your space, and ensure it’s tailored to your needs
Increase the amount of natural light, to improve your sense of wellbeing in your home
Create clean, simple designs, with splashes of colour and texture
Think sustainably, creating energy-efficient buildings
Our 5 Core Values:
Honesty and integrity
Attention to detail
Creativity and Innovation
Sustainability
Understanding and respecting people
Architect Fees in Wimbledon:
Unlike many architecture firms in Wimbledon, our fee structure is transparent.
We charge a fixed fee for our services. If you ask us to provide the full range of services set out in our design guide, you can expect the cost to be around 8-12% of your total costs for the build.
Typical architects charge between 11-15% of the construction value. This incentivises other Wimbledon architects to inflate costs, instead of designing a home in line with your priorities and budget.
More comprehensive details on our fees are available here.
A Comprehensive Package for Wimbledon
Our clients are typically time-poor, needing more space for growing families, and simply want someone to handle the whole project in an efficient and expert manner.
We remove the stress from the home improvement process, with a full range of architect services.
After the design stage, our site monitoring and post-completion checks take care of every detail for you.
We work with Merton Borough Council on your behalf to get planning permission, including drawing up plans and submitting them.
We have experience with house extensions, loft conversions, basement conversions, home refurbishments, new-build developments, in many areas of Wimbledon – ask our architects for advice on the best options to improve your home.
Wimbledon Residential Planning
Wimbledon lies within the Merton Borough Council planning area. While planners here can be very restrictive at times, it is generally easier to get planning in Wimbledon than some nearby areas like Richmond. Ease of obtaining planning permission for your extension can vary widely within small areas of Wimbledon, however, and the West Wimbledon Conservation Area is particularly challenging.
AURA Architecture have developed an in-depth local knowledge of planning in Wimbledon and will work on your behalf to obtain the planning you need, as well as carefully designing your home refurbishment to preempt potential issues before they arise. AURA’s Wimbledon architect specialists will prepare the planning application drawings, liaise with Merton Borough Council on your behalf, and generally save you hours and remove the hassle and frustration from the process.
Our Planning Services include:
Planning Application Drawings (including Plans, Sections, Elevations etc.)
Retrospective Planning
Advice on Permitted Development
Building Regulation Drawings for Building Control
Interior Design
Spatial Planning and Layout
Feasibility Consultancy
Our 10-step Home Design Process
1- START – Your journey begins by creating a design brief online using our online enquiry form.
2 – RESEARCH – The next stage sees us carry out a desktop study of your home in order to understand planning permission restrictions and Merton Council planning policies for your specific area of Wimbledon.
3 – CONSULTATION – Once we have done this, we meet you for a consultation at your home in Wimbledon, where we discuss your needs and provide you with a written quote.
4 – CONCEPTS – If you accept the quote, our architects produce three concept designs including, floor plans, sketches, and potentially a 3D virtual tour, to help you to visualise the designs.
5 – PLANNING – After this, the next step is to submit the planning application to Merton Council (where necessary). We can act as agents on your behalf, ensuring everything is submitted and processed on time.
6 – BUILDING CONTROL – We can also produce all relevant drawings required for Building Regulations and make these available so that our plans can be checked an approved for compliance.
7 – DETAILED DESIGN – Amongst the additional services we provide, we produce a Specification of Works
We use our established relationships with Party Wall Surveyors, Structural Engineers, and Mechanical and Electrical Engineers to ensure you are getting competitive quotes and reliable service.
8 – TENDER – We manage the tender process and ensure contracts for all work is comprehensive and transparent, showing what’s covered, when it will be completed, and how much you can expect to pay.
9 – SITE MONITORING – Finally, we can monitor the completion of the work for you, with regular site visits and reports as well as resolving any issues or potential problems to ensure the work is on target and as specified.
Our Online Reviews
Scott Robertson
June 20, 2023
Professional, reliable, great to work with.
Highly recommended if you are renovating your house.
Carina Isabel Lopes De Carvalho
May 2, 2023
It is a company of excellence
Emily Stuart
January 25, 2022
I used Aura for a side return and rear extension, and a renovation of my first floor bathroom. I wanted something unique and characterful, with lots of natural light. Aura really went above and beyond my expectations, creating me a space that truly is more than I could have imagined.
From the initial consultation, where I felt immediately at ease with the team, to the transparency in their costings, all the way through the design process and project management, Aura have been consistently professional, communicative and flexible.
It certainly hasn’t been an easy time for anyone in the industry, but Aura’s solution-first attitude and their adaptability made it so easy to work with them through lockdowns, supply chain challenges, pingdemics and everything in between. It was a true pleasure to work with the team - they really do their utmost to make the process as straightforward, simple and enjoyable as possible.
I’d not hesitate to recommend Aura. They team are the perfect balance of creative and practical, imagination and solutions, to make whatever dream you have come to life.
Rob Birkin
November 18, 2021
Georgina
February 9, 2021
I chose to use Aura based on their reviews in June 2020. At first it was a really good experience and I was impressed with their professionalisim.
I received my drawings and wasn't completely happy with them. The 4 options I was given were all basically the same thing.
They never came to my property to see the space or get a feel for where the light was coming in etc. The bathroom on the drawing didn't make sense as it was so small. (See below). The snug was also like a meter so again didn't make sense.
I tried to escalate this to Ben, and I was offered another call but I had lost confidence in them.
My neighbour was also doing work on her flat which is a similar layout and in contrast her drawings were really well thoughtout. In the end I had to pay again to get my drawings redone. (Attachment P&S - one example of my new drawings below - the more detailed drawings).
I asked Aura for a partial refund as I never actually received a final drawing from them (despite paying for them) and they refused.
It was just a disappointing and expensive experience.
Anthony Egan
May 22, 2020
I recently contacted Aura Homes Ltd to discuss a small development project. The project was unusual and a lot of factors needed to be taken into account due to the location, site surroundings and practicality of the proposal.
I originally discussed it with Ben Richards who I found to be helpful, knowledgable and very accommodating in that he listened intently to give a fair assessment of feasibility.
Iris Kouneni was assigned to me and met with me to thoroughly discuss and understand what my intentions were. Like Ben, she digested my layman’s view and proceeded to give me her professional opinion.
Iris and Ben were an absolute delight to work with, professional, knowledgeable, enthusiastic and communicative to mention just a few of their qualities.
Unfortunately due to the COVID19 lockdown we have had to shelve the project.
It's been a pleasure to work with Aura Homes Ltd, refreshingly honest and professional.
I look forward to working together with them in the future.
Brendan Quinn
May 20, 2020
Thanks for reading this review. Ben is one of my monthly sponsors of the Property Events that I have run and also of the National Development Summit earlier in 2020. In a business setting I really appreciate Ben's support, particularly during COVid19- Ben had the option of pulling out of my events as a sponsor- as I have had to pivot- moving them online. Ben has continued to support these events as a sponsor, when he could have easily turned his back and moved on. Also at the National Development Summit 2020, Ben could see the effort I had put in to make the event, a great event, and himself and his team also equally put in huge effort. When you organise events, you ideally want things to go smoothly in terms of presenters turning up on time/before time, and with slides which are hassle free, and this Ben has done so. I have been to Ben's office several times and the staff have been really friendly. Ben's knowledge of working at Berkeley Homes, puts his company at a very high level.
Louise Hancock
April 13, 2020
Aura Homes is a highly professional firm of architects that always have the clients best interests at hart. The quality of their plans and drawings is superb and their turn-around when making amendments well within expected timelines. For bespoke projects, their research and recommendations (both in terms of quality and costs) is superb.
Harry Bucknell
April 10, 2020
Couldn't recommend Ben and his team more. We were in a really tricky position with our building project and Ben navigated us safely out of it. Superb guidance, great technical knowledge and what I really valued the most was the communication. Always got back to me promptly which makes a real difference when stress levels are high. Thanks Aura!
Eugene Clarke
April 9, 2020
The quality of work from Arua Architecture is to an excellent standard. We worked primarily with Ben and Gabby, they provide a friendly and professional service that minimised the worry and stresses associated with building projects.
We hired Aura Architecture to assist us with our building project. We appointed them for the following work:
- Regularisation on previous designs
- Planning conditions discharge
- Building regulation drawings
- Detailed designs
They came recommended from a Structural engineering company, and we were not disappointed.
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