Serving Windermere, the Lake District and surrounding areas
Kendal is nine miles south-east of Windermere and, unlike the rest of the area we cover, it sits just outside the National Park boundary.
Kendal is called the Auld Grey Town for a reason: it is built of grey limestone, not the dark slate stone of the central Lakes. Its historic core is a pattern of narrow yards running off the main streets, and around it are Victorian terraces, inter-war semis and newer estates – a much wider mix of houses than the villages inside the Park.
Being outside the National Park changes the rules. Planning applications go to Westmorland and Furness Council rather than the National Park Authority, and ordinary permitted development rights apply, so some extensions that would need full permission in Windermere can be built here under permitted development or the prior-approval route. Conservation areas and listed buildings in the town centre are still controlled closely.
The other thing Kendal has learned is flooding. The River Kent flooded large parts of the town during Storm Desmond in December 2015, and work on properties near the river now needs flood resilience thought through from the start.
Matching grey limestone or render differs from slate. We source and lay to suit.
More extensions can avoid full planning permission. We check what applies to your house.
Riverside properties get levels, drainage and finishes designed for flood resilience.
Narrow historic yards mean hand-carried materials, and buildings are often listed.
Single and two-storey extensions in stone, slate and glass, built to sit naturally against a Lakeland house.
Low-energy extensions with high insulation, airtightness and glazing placed for the light, not the heat loss.
Insulated garden offices, studios and rooms for guests, clad in cedar or larch and built on a proper base.
New homes, replacement dwellings, garages and outbuildings, from groundworks to the finished building.
Measured surveys, plans, elevations and 3D drawings, and the planning application that goes with them.
Timber jetties, landing stages and lakeshore decking, built for water levels that rise and fall.
Steel-framed buildings, workshops, hospitality and holiday-let work for Lake District businesses.
Careful barn conversions, character homes, holiday lets and studios for Lake District landowners.
Practical agricultural buildings, livestock sheds, stables and storage for Lake District farmers.
Extensions, bedrooms, restaurants, spa facilities and refurbishments for Lake District hoteliers.
No. Kendal is just outside the boundary, so planning is decided by Westmorland and Furness Council, and standard permitted development rights apply.
Yes – workshops, steel-framed buildings, shop and office refurbishment, and extensions to commercial premises.
Possibly. Many single-storey rear extensions fall under permitted development or the prior-approval scheme outside the National Park, subject to size limits and any conservation area or listing. We check before you commit.
Yes – rear extensions, kitchen extensions, loft work and garden rooms on terraces and semis are a large part of building work in the town.
Talk to Lakes Construction and arrange a free quotation.