For the last three months, the house we are refurbishing in Heslop Road, Balham, has been supported by temporary steels that have been holding it up since we knocked down the side of the kitchen.

We have recently constructed the new side-return wall and are in the process of inserting two 2.7m columns, which will form the box frame at the back of the house.

Once that frame is complete the house will be supported on its own rather than the temporary supports – which is a significant milestone for the full house refurbishment project.

We are yet to build the side extension as there is currently a planning permission application in for a change in the design to the roof. It is perfectly normal for small design changes to come about during a project and those that effect the exterior of the building need to have planning permission.

With this project, the client has realised that he could have bigger windows to allow in more natural light if the roof continued at an angle rather than being squared off. In most cases these types of planning permission applications are granted, but it can slow down a project or in the worst case scenario put it on hold.

As well as the work on the ground floor, underpinning continues on the basement conversion and we are currently digging the rear lightwell. This is the final phase of digging around the perimeter of the basement; once complete the land-mass will be dug out.

Removing the land mass can take from one-to-two weeks depending on how many people you can have working on it and how many skips you are able to fill and replace in a day. If we can achieve an optimum five this part of the project will progress very smoothly.