Up when it's needed, gone when it isn't · All 32 London boroughs
Scaffolding in London
Erection, licensing, inspection and removal — including pavement licences from the borough.
New build, rear elevation
Rendered multi-storey rear elevation of a new build under constructionWhat we do
Scaffolding on a London street usually needs a licence from the borough, and the licence takes longer than the scaffold. We apply, insure, erect, inspect on schedule and strike it the week the work above finishes rather than leaving it standing on your bill.
Included as standard
- Design, erection and dismantling
- Borough pavement and highway licence applications
- Weekly statutory inspections and handover tags
- Debris netting, sheeting and fans
- Temporary roofs for loft and roof work
- Full public liability insurance
- Typical timescale
- Duration of works
- Coverage
- 32 boroughs
- Payment
- In arrears
- Trading since
- 2008
Licensing and inspection duties
Scaffolding standing on the public highway or footway needs a licence from the borough's highways department, issued in the contractor's name with public liability insurance in place. Applications take time to process, which is why the licence rather than the scaffold is usually the critical path item.
Once erected, scaffolding must be inspected before first use, then at intervals not exceeding seven days, and again after any alteration or any event likely to have affected its stability. Those inspections are recorded, and the tag on the scaffold shows its current status.
Where a scaffold affects a neighbour's property — an overhang, or a tie into a shared wall — that needs their agreement, and where it forms part of party wall works it falls within the award rather than being a separate conversation.
Scaffolding is also the item most often left standing longer than it needs to be, because striking it takes a visit nobody has scheduled. We programme the strike alongside the work above it.
The limits above are the national permitted-development rules for England. Your borough may restrict them further through a conservation area or an Article 4 direction — we confirm the position for your address in writing before quoting.
Our work
Scaffolding we have completed
Answers
Scaffolding — common questions
Do I need planning permission for scaffolding in London?
It depends on the property type and what is proposed. Many single-storey rear extensions and loft conversions fall under permitted development, but those rights do not apply to flats and are restricted in conservation areas or where an Article 4 direction applies. We check the planning position for your specific address before quoting, and tell you in writing which route applies.
How do you price the work?
From a site survey, written up as a fixed and itemised scope before any deposit is discussed. If something genuinely unforeseen appears once work is opened up, it is priced and agreed in writing before we continue — never added to the final invoice after the fact.
When do I pay?
In arrears of work completed. You pay for work that has been done and inspected, not for work that has been promised. This has been how the company operates since 2008.
Do you handle Party Wall notices?
Yes, where the work requires them. Under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996, notifiable work on a shared wall needs 2 months written notice to the adjoining owner, while excavation near a neighbouring structure and building at the line of junction need 1 month. We serve the notices and manage the award process as part of the job.
Will I get certificates at the end?
Yes. Electrical work is tested and certificated under Part P, and building control issues a completion certificate where an application was required. You receive the handover pack — it is what a buyer's solicitor will ask for when you eventually sell.
How long will it take?
It depends entirely on scope, and we give a programme with the written quote rather than a guess on the phone. What we will not do is start a job we cannot resource, which is the usual reason a build stalls halfway through.
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A picture and a postcode tells us more than any enquiry form. You will get a straight answer about cost and whether it needs planning permission.