Lidfield Road is a 35 sqm rear and side infill extension on a Victorian terrace in Stoke Newington, N16. It took 22 weeks to build and cost £59,000 plus VAT. The brief was to turn an unused side return and a tired conservatory into one warm, characterful kitchen and dining space with a proper connection to the garden. Below is the full project: the brief, the design, the floorplan, the cost and timeline, and the finished rooms.
Floorplans, design sketches and the complete photo set in one document.
Download the Lidfield Road case study (PDF)
The project at a glance
| Location | Stoke Newington, N16 |
| Property | Victorian terrace |
| Extension type | Rear and side infill extension |
| Size added | 35 sqm |
| Build time | 22 weeks |
| Cost | £59,000 + VAT |
The starting point
Lidfield Road is a Victorian terrace in Stoke Newington, N16. At the back of the house sat an underused side return and a dated lean-to conservatory, neither doing much for the property. The owner wanted a cosy, characterful kitchen and dining space rather than a stark modern box: somewhere with a proper sense of home, that still opened out to the garden.
What we built
The design combines a rear extension with a side infill, adding 35 sqm and creating one open-plan kitchen and dining room. Wide-opening French patio doors connect the room to the garden, while two roof lights bring daylight in along the vaulted ceiling. Exposed London stock brick on the party wall and chimney breast keeps the period character of the house present inside the new space, rather than hiding it behind plaster.
The kitchen is a deVOL design in Sebastian Cox cabinetry, in a soft, pale finish that reads as furniture rather than fitted units, with brass taps and fittings picking up the warmth of the brick.
The floorplan
The extension holds the kitchen along one side wall, with a dining table running down the centre and a built-in window seat at the rear, doubling as extra seating at the head of the table. The layout keeps a clear run from the front of the house through to the garden doors, with the staircase and hallway to the original rooms unaffected.
The ground floor plan is included in the case study PDF (download above).
The design features that make it work
Window seat. A built-in window seat at the rear of the extension gives a cosy spot to sit, and works as an extra place at the table when needed, rather than eating into the room with more freestanding furniture.
Butcher’s block, not a fixed island. The extension is slightly narrower than most, so a fixed island would have blocked easy flow through the room. A butcher’s block on wheels does the job instead — it can be wheeled to the centre for extra prep space, or pushed to the end of the table when more surface is needed for serving.
Open shelving. Open shelves in place of wall cupboards keep the room feeling lighter, and give a natural spot to display the kind of everyday objects that make a kitchen feel lived-in rather than showroom-styled.
Exposed London stock brick. Leaving a section of the original external wall exposed inside the new room ties the extension back to the house it’s built onto, and adds warmth and texture that plaster alone wouldn’t give.
Two roof lights. A pair of roof lights set into the vaulted ceiling, rather than one large lantern, spreads daylight along the length of the room from the kitchen through to the dining area.
Planning and party wall
A rear and side infill extension of this size on a Victorian terrace can sometimes fall within permitted development, but it depends on the exact depth, height and the property’s planning history, and side infill in particular often tips a project into needing full planning permission. To check where your own project might sit, our planning checker is a quick first step.
The house shares walls with neighbours, so the build also came under the Party Wall Act, which meant serving notice and agreeing terms with the adjoining owners before work started. We explain the process on our party wall page.
What it cost and how long it took
The build came in at £59,000 plus VAT over 22 weeks, for 35 sqm of new kitchen and dining space finished to a high standard. Costs vary with size, specification and the state of the existing house, so treat this as one real data point. For how side return and rear extension costs break down in more detail, see our side return extension cost guide and our extension cost guide. You can also read more on our side return extension page.
From the design team
“Our client wanted to include a kitchen island within the extension design; however, as the extension is slightly narrower, it would have been difficult to accommodate a fixed island while still maintaining easy flow through the space. Instead, we incorporated a butcher’s block. The model the client selected is on wheels, making it highly functional and versatile — it can be positioned centrally for additional preparation space, or moved to the end of the table when extra surface area is needed for serving food during dinner parties. A butcher’s block is also a key design trend for 2026, with many clients opting for them over fixed kitchen islands to introduce a more rustic feel to their kitchens.”
— David Abimbola, Head of Design, Build Team
Rear and side infill extensions in Stoke Newington: common questions
Do you need planning permission for a rear and side infill extension?
It depends on the size, depth and whether the side infill affects the building line. Some smaller projects fall under permitted development, but many rear-and-side-return combinations on a terrace need a full application. Check your own case with our planning checker (linked above).
How much does a rear and side infill extension cost in London?
It depends on size and specification. Lidfield Road was £59,000 plus VAT for 35 sqm. Our side return extension cost guide (linked above) breaks the numbers down.
How long does a project like this take?
This one took 22 weeks on site. Timelines shift with size, ground conditions and specification.
Do I need a party wall agreement?
If your house is attached to a neighbour, almost certainly yes. See our party wall page (linked above) for how it works.
Thinking about a rear or side return extension?
Build Team is a London design and build specialist, trusted by more than 1,750 London homeowners. We design and build rear and side return extensions like Lidfield Road, with a clear, fixed price agreed before work begins. Book a free consultation to talk through your home and your budget.
Or call 020 7495 6561 · email hello@buildteam.com
