How long does a typical residential project take?

As a rough guide, feasibility and design take one to three months, planning adds two to three months, technical design and tender another one to two months, and construction depends on scope. Always treat these as indicative and plan against your own programme.

Do I need an architect for a small extension?

Not always, but a chartered architect reduces risk on planning, buildability and value. For permitted-development work a lighter service may be enough; for anything that needs planning permission or careful detailing, professional input usually pays for itself.

What is the RIBA Plan of Work?

It is the industry-standard framework that breaks a project into defined stages from strategic definition to handover. It gives everyone a shared language for where a project is and what happens next.

Everyone

How the Architecture Process Works, Stage by Stage

The complete journey from a rough idea to a built project, and what actually happens at each stage.

Reviewed 10 June 2026 · 8 min read

How the Architecture Process Works, Stage by Stage — illustrative image — Illustrative imagery. Not a specific AH Architecture project.

Hiring an architect for the first time is daunting because the process is invisible from the outside. This guide maps the whole journey, loosely following the RIBA Plan of Work stages, so you know what happens, when, and why.

Not every project needs every stage. A small extension is lighter than a new building, but the logic is the same: reduce risk early, resolve detail before you build, and protect the design on site.

Stage 1 — Feasibility and brief

Before anything is drawn, we test whether the idea works: the site, the planning risk and a realistic budget. This is where most expensive mistakes are caught, while they are still free to fix.

You leave this stage knowing whether to proceed, and on what terms.

Stage 2 — Concept design

We turn the brief into a design direction: how the spaces work, where the light comes from, the massing and the first sketches. We design with the planning strategy in mind from the start, not as an afterthought.

Stage 3 — Planning

We prepare and submit the planning application, manage the council’s questions, and represent the scheme through to a decision. Designing around how the case officer actually assesses an application is what reduces the risk of refusal.

Stage 4 — Technical design and tender

The approved concept becomes a coordinated technical package a contractor can price and build from, with structural and other consultants integrated. We then help you tender the work and compare builders on a like-for-like basis.

Stage 5 — Construction

During the build we administer the contract and inspect progress, protecting the design, the budget and the programme. Staying involved on site is what keeps the finished building true to what was approved.

Frequently asked questions

How long does a typical residential project take?: As a rough guide, feasibility and design take one to three months, planning adds two to three months, technical design and tender another one to two months, and construction depends on scope. Always treat these as indicative and plan against your own programme.
Do I need an architect for a small extension?: Not always, but a chartered architect reduces risk on planning, buildability and value. For permitted-development work a lighter service may be enough; for anything that needs planning permission or careful detailing, professional input usually pays for itself.
What is the RIBA Plan of Work?: It is the industry-standard framework that breaks a project into defined stages from strategic definition to handover. It gives everyone a shared language for where a project is and what happens next.