New House Construction
New Builds Belfast
Building from scratch is mostly a sequencing problem. CSW builds new houses across Belfast and Northern Ireland, and gets the consents in the order that keeps the site moving.
What Actually Makes A Site Buildable
People usually ask about a new build in the wrong order. The first question is not what it costs per square foot. It is whether the plot can take a house at all, and that comes down to four things: whether planning will accept a dwelling there, where the public sewer and water main run, whether the ground will carry the foundation design without something expensive underneath it, and whether there is a road access the council will sign off. Get an answer to those four and the rest is arithmetic.
We build across Belfast and the surrounding districts, from single houses on infill plots to replacement dwellings on a site where something older is coming down. The work is the same either way: set out, dig, pour, build, roof, service, fit out. What varies enormously is how much of the budget disappears below ground before anybody sees a wall.
The consents have to happen in an order too, and it is not the order people assume. Planning first, because there is no point designing to a building regulation standard for a house that will not be permitted. Then the sewer position, because it can move the footprint. Then Full Plans building control, because that is what gets inspected. Doing it in any other sequence means paying for drawings twice.
Groundwork And Substructure
Setting out, excavation, foundations to the design the ground actually justifies, drainage runs and inspection chambers, and the sub floor build up. The most expensive stage to get wrong and the least visible when finished.
Superstructure And Roof
Blockwork, cavity insulation, wall ties at the correct centres, floor structure, roof timbers and covering. Getting the house watertight is the milestone that takes the programme off the weather.
Fit Out And Handover
First and second fix, plastering, joinery, internal doors and stairs, decoration and external works. Our own joiners do the second fix, which is why the finish looks made rather than assembled.
Why Use CSW To Build
One Contractor, Whole Site
Groundwork, blockwork, joinery and landscaping under one roof. Nobody is standing idle waiting on a subcontractor who took another job.
We Know The Inspection Stages
District council building control wants to see specific things at specific points. We work to that rather than opening work back up afterwards.
50 Years Of Combined Experience
Skilled tradesmen across every stage of a house, which matters on a site where the same crew carries the job from trench to skirting board.
Honest About The Ground
If the trench says the foundation needs to go deeper, we tell you the day we find out rather than after it is poured.
Materials Specified Properly
Insulation, blockwork and timber chosen for the build rather than for the tender. It is the part of the spec nobody sees and everybody feels.
External Works Included
Driveway, boundary, levels and planting are part of the job, not a separate contractor you have to find once the house is finished.
Consents For A New House In Northern Ireland
A new dwelling needs more consents than any other job on this site, and they come from different bodies on different timescales. This is general guidance for Northern Ireland rather than advice about your plot, and your district council and NI Water are the authorities on your specific case.
Full Plans, Not A Building Notice
Building control in Northern Ireland sits with your district council under the Building Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2012. There is no private approved inspector option here, which is worth knowing if you have been reading English self build guidance: in Northern Ireland the council is the only route and there is nobody else to appoint.
For a new house it is a Full Plans application. A Building Notice can only be used for minor planned work to a single domestic property, so it is not available to you for a dwelling. Full Plans means the drawings are assessed and, if they satisfy the regulations, the council issues a Notice of Passing of Plans for that design.
- That Notice of Passing of Plans is the document a solicitor or a lender will look for later.
- It is issued against a design, so a change on site is a change to the approved drawings, not an informal decision.
- Inspections happen at set stages through the build rather than once at the end.
The Sewer Decides The Footprint
This is the one that catches self builders hardest. NI Water will not consider a proposal to build over a public sewer for a new building at all. Not with a structural report, not with a diversion promise. For a new dwelling the answer is no.
The protected strip is three metres, or one and a half times the depth of the sewer, whichever is greater, and building over or near a public sewer, water main or associated works without NI Water's prior consent is an offence under Article 236 of the Water and Sewerage Services (Northern Ireland) Order 2006.
- Establish where the sewer runs before you buy the plot if you possibly can, and certainly before you commission drawings.
- If a sewer crosses the middle of a narrow infill plot, the house may simply not fit, and that is better known on day one.
- Where a diversion is the answer, it is a separate NI Water process with its own timescale, so build it into the programme.
Planning Comes First, And It Is The Council's
Since the 2015 local government reform, planning applications in Northern Ireland are decided by the eleven district councils rather than a central planning service. For a new dwelling this is a full planning application, not permitted development, because permitted development rights under the Planning (General Permitted Development) Order (Northern Ireland) 2015 attach to an existing dwellinghouse and its curtilage.
It is worth being clear that planning permission and building control approval are two separate consents from the same council. Having one does not get you the other, and they are assessed against completely different criteria: planning cares what the house looks like and where it sits, building control cares whether it stands up and performs.
- A replacement dwelling is not automatically permitted just because something stood there before.
- If the plot is in a conservation area or the existing building is listed, expect a separate consent and a longer programme.
- Conditions attached to a planning approval are binding, and some of them have to be discharged before work starts.
The Stages Of A New House
Setting Out And Excavation
The house is set out on the plot against the approved drawings and the site levels are taken properly, because a level assumed rather than measured is how a finished floor ends up 200mm above the driveway. Topsoil comes off and is stockpiled where it will not be in the way for the next six months.
Then the trenches. What comes out of them decides the foundation design, and on Belfast sites that ranges from firm boulder clay you can build on straight away to soft alluvial ground near the river valleys that wants something more expensive. The building control officer inspects the open trench before anything is poured.
Substructure And Drainage
Foundations, rising walls, and the drainage laid to falls with proper inspection chambers rather than the improvised bends that cause blockages for the next thirty years. Connections to the public sewer are made where NI Water's consent says they can be made.
The sub floor build up, insulation and damp proof membrane go in at this stage. It is worth spending here. Everything above it depends on it and none of it is accessible again.
Shell, Roof And Weathertight
Blockwork up, cavity insulated, wall ties bedded at the right spacing, cavity trays and lintels over openings. The floor structure goes in, then roof timbers, then covering.
Windows and doors follow and the house is watertight. From that day the programme stops being at the mercy of a wet Belfast fortnight, which is why we push hard to reach it.
Services, Fit Out And External Works
First fix electrics and plumbing before plaster. Worth flagging: Northern Ireland has no equivalent of the England and Wales Part P regime and there are currently no statutory requirements for domestic electrical installation work here, so ask explicitly for certification from an electrician registered with a recognised body rather than assuming it is automatic.
Then plaster, second fix joinery, stairs, internal doors, kitchen and bathrooms, decoration. Outside, the driveway, levels, boundary and planting. The house is not finished when the front door locks, it is finished when you can walk round it.
How A New Build Runs With Us
Look At The Plot
We walk the site with you, talk about access, levels, orientation and what is likely to be under the surface. If we think the plot has a problem, we say so before you spend on drawings.
Planning
The design goes to your district council for full planning permission. Nothing else is worth commissioning until the principle of a dwelling on the plot is settled.
Sewer And Services
NI Water's records are checked, the protected strip is plotted on the drawing, and connections and any diversion are applied for. This can move the footprint, so it happens before Full Plans.
Full Plans Building Control
Drawings and specification go to the council for assessment, with the aim of a Notice of Passing of Plans before anybody breaks ground.
Build To Programme
Groundwork, substructure, shell, roof, services and fit out, with the council's inspections booked at the correct stages rather than chased retrospectively.
Handover With Paperwork
Keys, the completion paperwork from the council, and the external works finished. You should leave the site with documents, not just a handshake.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use a Building Notice for a new house in Northern Ireland?
No. A Building Notice can only be used for minor planned work to a single domestic property, so it is not available for a new dwelling. A new house goes in as a Full Plans application, where the drawings are assessed and the council can issue a Notice of Passing of Plans for that design.
Can I appoint a private building inspector like people do in England?
No, and this surprises a lot of self builders. There is no private approved inspector route in Northern Ireland. Building control here is administered by your district council under the Building Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2012, and the council is the only body that can do it. English self build guidance on choosing an inspector simply does not apply.
There is a public sewer running across my plot. Can I build over it?
Not for a new building. NI Water will not consider a proposal to build over a public sewer for a new building, and building over or near one without prior consent is an offence under Article 236 of the Water and Sewerage Services (Northern Ireland) Order 2006. The protected strip is three metres or one and a half times the depth, whichever is greater.
What is the first thing I should check before buying a plot?
Where the services run and whether the principle of a dwelling is acceptable in planning. Ground conditions cost money but rarely stop a build. A sewer through the middle of a narrow plot, or a planning history of refusals, can stop it dead. Both are checkable before you commit.
Do planning permission and building control approval come together?
No. They are two separate consents, assessed against different criteria, even though in Northern Ireland both come from your district council. Planning is concerned with whether a house should be there and what it looks like. Building control is concerned with whether it stands up and performs. You need both for a new dwelling.
How deep will my foundations need to be?
Nobody can tell you honestly until the trench is open. The design is driven by what the ground actually is, and Belfast sites vary from firm clay you can build on immediately to soft ground that needs a more expensive solution. The council's building control officer inspects the open trench before any concrete goes in.
Who certifies the electrics in a new house here?
Ask for it in writing. Northern Ireland has no equivalent of the England and Wales Part P self certification regime and there are currently no statutory requirements for domestic electrical installation work. We use electricians registered with a recognised body and obtain an installation certificate, but on a self build you should be asking every trade the same question.
Can you build a replacement dwelling on the site of an old house?
Often, but it is a full planning application and the fact something stood there before does not make it automatic. Permitted development rights under the 2015 Order attach to an existing dwellinghouse and its curtilage, not to a demolished one, so replacement is decided on its own merits by the council.
How much of the budget goes below ground?
More than people expect, and it is the part with the least certainty at quote stage. Excavation, foundations, drainage, sub floor build up and any ground improvement all happen before a single course of visible blockwork. We would rather set that expectation at the start than have the conversation halfway through.
Do you handle the driveway and boundaries too?
Yes, and it is worth having in the same contract. CSW does landscaping, paving and fencing as well as building, so the external works, levels and boundary can be finished by the same team that set the site out. It avoids the gap where a new house sits finished in a field of mud waiting on somebody else.
More Building & Construction From CSW
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Send us the plot address or the planning reference and we will tell you what we think is realistic on it. If you are still deciding whether to buy, that conversation is worth having first. No charge for the visit.
- Call us: 07703 433214
- Email: Cswbuild@gmail.com
- Location: Belfast, Northern Ireland