Dreaming of a fabulous kitchen extension? Here’s where to start

If you’re sick and tired of your cramped kitchen, it could be time to extend. If you have the space, budget and the ambition, a kitchen extension could transform your home. It’ll make the kitchen the star of the show, a generous open-plan space flooded with light. 
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Kitchen extensions can be costly, plus there are practical issues such as planning permission to resolve. But get it right, and you won’t regret opening up the space. In fact, you’re likely to find that you and your family start spending all your time in your fabulous new kitchen extension. 

Before you start your project, here are some key things to be thinking about:

• Your options for extending

There are a few ways to add extra space to your kitchen. You could knock through into an adjacent dining or reception room, extend out with a side return or build a new extension into the back garden. It’s crucial to explore all of your options, and cost them up, before making your final choice. It could even be worth seeking advice from an architect or designer. Will you need planning permission and to meet building regulations? And would your new extension affect your neighbours at all? These are all issues to look into. ​

• Is your budget realistic?

According to Ideal Home, you can expect to pay around £1,250 per square meter for a simple, single-storey kitchen extension. This includes budget fittings, and no unexpected site or building issues. If you want a larger extension or to up the specification, you could be looking at around £2,500 per square meter.

• Making the best use of natural light

Ensuring your new kitchen is well-lit with windows, patio doors and even skylights is an important part of the planning process. But don’t forget about the rest of the house. If you add any structure to the back or side of your property, it could block out the light that reaches the rest of the house. The last thing you want is to make the other rooms dark and gloomy. Bear this in mind when planning where to add windows – for example, you can opt for skylights for side return extensions where windows aren’t possible.

• Nailing the layout

It isn’t always easy to figure out the best layout for a large new kitchen extension, especially when you have new windows and doors to work around. While they may be the most appealing, open plan spaces can be the hardest to get right. It’s essential to get a good idea of the layout before starting any work on the extension, as it will affect everything. You need to know how the space will be divided and where plumbing, electrical and other systems will go.
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After you’ve put in all that time, money and hard work on the extension, it’s crucial to get the best quality finish possible. Bring in an experienced team of fitters from A&J Kitchens for a seamless, picture-perfect finish – call us on 01942 873781 or email [email protected] to tell us about your plans.