BCP Council (Poole area): Matt Annen is thrilled to announce that he has secured planning permission for an extensive householder remodel to an existing dwelling on Panorama Road in Sandbanks, Poole including an additional storey, new front and rear balconies, extended terrace areas and revised landscaping. This stunning scheme was designed by Marlow Architects.
The current property was a two-storey house on the northern side of Panorama Road, with shared gated access serving flats to the rear. The frontage is screened by a row of pines. The wider street scene is mixed in scale and unapologetically contemporary in places, with buildings ranging from two to four storeys and some very substantial harbour-side properties nearby.
The site carried an unusually rich planning history, and that history did the heavy lifting.
Permission granted in May 2024 (ref APP/24/00193/F) for “extension, alterations and remodelling of the existing dwelling proposed resulting in 4 storey contemporary house” remained extant and capable of implementation. Alongside it sat an October 2021 prior approval under Class AA for two additional storeys, plus earlier consents in 2014, 2015 and 2021 for roof terrace and second-floor additions.
That gave us a robust fallback position. Working with Marlow Architects, the scheme was pitched deliberately below what had already been found acceptable: one additional storey rather than two. The new roof level accommodated a terrace and a small, well-set-back built form housing a gym, sauna, hot tub and covered seating, accessed by a reintroduced spiral stair from the existing first-floor terrace
The argument to the case officer was simple and difficult to resist. With a full storey of consented accommodation removed, the proposal could have no greater impact on the character and appearance of the locality, or on neighbouring amenity, than a scheme the Council had already endorsed.
The application was supported by a full Arboricultural Impact Assessment, Arboricultural Method Statement and Tree Protection Plan, demonstrating that the works could be delivered without harm to the protected pines. These are now secured by conditions, including a pre-commencement site meeting to agree supplemental protection measures.
On flood risk, the site sits in Flood Zone 1 for the present day but is shown at potential tidal risk under the 2070–2125 climate change dataset. Because the extension falls well below the 250 sqm threshold, Environment Agency standing advice applied. Our Flood Risk Assessment confirmed that ground floor levels are unaltered, that all additional floorspace sits at upper level well above any modelled flood level, and that the unchanged footprint means no impact on flood risk elsewhere or on surface water drainage.
The scheme was assessed against Poole Local Plan policies PP01, PP27, PP31, PP33, PP35 and PP38, and against Sandbanks Peninsula Neighbourhood Plan policies SAND1 to SAND6, covering landscape character, views, trees and gardens, biodiversity, design and open spaces. Permission was granted subject to five conditions, with the Council confirming that the statutory biodiversity gain condition does not apply to householder applications.
The result was a consented scheme that delivers a genuinely contemporary, high-specification home with generous roof-level amenity space, in a location where design scrutiny is at its highest.
If you are considering a householder extension, additional storeys, remodelling or a replacement dwelling, including complex sites with protected trees, coastal flood risk and Neighbourhood Plan constraints, then we would be happy to assist you.