We’ve got some great deals on at our Conservatory Outlet showrooms in Lancashire, Cheshire and Cumbria this January.

There’s 35% off the entire range of energy efficient windows and doors, orangeries and conservatories. And you can just pay a £99 deposit and nothing for 12 months.

But you’d better be quick, these deals cannot last forever!!!

Everything you need to know about Planning Permission and Building Regulations for your bespoke orangery project.

For many, when planning your modern bespoke orangery, Planning Permission and Building Regulations can be an unwanted concern. By choosing Conservatory Outlet this is taken out of your hands so you are free to enjoy the exciting parts of choosing your dream orangery or contemporary conservatory – such as what style will you have, will the roof be glass or polycarbonate and how will you use your new orangery or sunroom?

What is the difference between Planning Permission and Building Regulations?

Planning Permission and Building Regulations are often confused. Both are the responsibility of the Local Authority and basically, Planning Permission takes into consideration the aesthetic effect of a new building/orangery on the surrounding homes and neighbourhood, whilst Building Regulations define how the structure must be constructed in terms of thermal efficiency etc.

Do I need Planning Permission?

Conservatory Outlet will take care of this for you, but for your information, here is a summary of the basic facts. In most cases you will not require planning permission for your orangery in the same way as a conservatory under the present legislation, unless you are adding an orangery to a house that has already been extended. You may also need to check if your house is a ‘new build’ as developers sometimes place restrictions on them.

You may now be able to build quite a number of orangeries or conservatories without planning permission that previously would have needed it. The following rules must be followed to remain exempt from them.

• They are built at ground level and are less than 30 square metres in floor area

• At least half of the new wall and three quarters of the roof is either glazed or translucent material.

• The orangery/conservatory is separated from the house by external quality door(s).

• Glazing and any fixed electrical installations comply with the applicable building regulations requirements.

From 1st October 2008 new rules for conservatories, orangeries and glass extensions took affect which replaced the old rules and affect planning rules as follows:

1. No extension forward of the principal elevation or side elevation fronting a highway. This means that any orangery on the front or side of a house that will be closer to a public highway than the original house will need planning permission. A highway is any public right of way including footpaths.

2. Maximum depth of a single-storey rear extension of three metres for an attached house and four metres for a detached house. The width of an orangery running along the back length of a house is not constrained at all unless it projects beyond the house which is constrained by rule 3. A house is only detached if there is no solid structure connecting it to a neighbour. A “link” house is therefore not detached nor would be two houses with a common garage. The rules on what counts as being detached have not changed from the previous ones.

3. Side extensions to be single storey with maximum height of four metres and width no more than half that of the original house.

4. Maximum eaves height of an extension within two metres of the boundary of three metres from the lowest point on the ground.

5. No verandas, balconies or raised platforms.

6. On designated land no permitted development for rear extensions of more than one storey; no cladding of the exterior; no side extensions.

7. No more than half the area of land around the “original house” would be covered by additions or other buildings.

8. Maximum height of a single-storey rear extension of four metres.

While permitted development rights now allow for the construction of many orangeries and conservatories without planning permission items 1 and 2 above may still limit their size and material construction if you want to avoid building regulations. If a conservatory you are building does not meet any of the above four rules then it will have to adhere to building regulations in full.

Will my orangery need to satisfy Building Regulations?

In general, a domestic orangery or conservatory will be exempt under UK building regulations, again, ask Conservatory Outlet to check this out for you, they will take care of the process.

If you would like to receive a quotation for an orangery or modern conservatory then please fill in one of our free quotation request forms, and our sales advisor can also discuss whether your project will need planning permission or building regulations.

Conservatories and Orangeries UK

There is a bit of confusion from people in the UK about exactly what is an ‘orangery‘. Well, the orangeries we sell at Conservatory Outlet are more like modern, contemporary conservatories.

The main feature of our orangeries is that we utilise brickwork or stone columns within the design, so that you don’t have the uPVC conservatory bay pole or corner posts you would normally find on a traditional uPVC conservatory.

The images shown are taken from the Lanashire Conservatory Outlet showroom in Leyland in Lancashire. There is also an orangery on display at the Cheshire Conservatory Outlet showroom in Holmes Chapel.

Also, we tend to fit an internal lighting pelmet with downlighters which makes a real feature to the inside of the orangery, and sets it apart from a normal conservatory. Basically, the orangery feels more like a glass extension or sunroom with a combination of glazed frames and walls. We normally install a glass roof on our orangeries, too, and there are a range of glazing options available.

There are numerous orangery designs available, including Victorian Orangeries, Edwardian Orangeries and more contemporary oranageries.

The real advantage of Conservatory Outlet orangeries is that they are very affordable. If you are looking to get a quote for an orangery or just need a bit more advice then fill in our quotation request form, or visit one of our conservatory showrooms and speak with an advisor.

In the last of a series of articles in the Conservatory Magazine Matthew Glover from Conservatory Outlet, looks at some of the more unique marketing opportunities that may present themselves and reviews some of their most valued forms of marketing. From their appearance through West Yorkshire Windows on ITV’s Natural Born Sellers, to the cult Renegade Conservatory Guy Blog it all makes for absorbing viewing and reading.

As a discipline, marketing is often discussed in terms of advertising, PR, direct marketing, the internet etc. However there are a whole host of other promotional tools to be exploited and a little creativity, some lateral thinking and even a bit of luck can often result in a very unique marketing opportunity. We should always consider that marketing at its most basic level is about interaction with both new and existing customers.

In this regular column I have highlighted the opportunities in TV, the internet and even exhibitions/conferences as part of an integrated marketing plan. Our own experiences at Conservatory Outlet have shown that individual marketing tools are ok, but the real rewards are achieved with a multi-faceted campaign. Never turn down an opportunity to promote your company and sometimes it pays to be a little bold in your approach!

The Internet

For several years our internet strategy has been a fundamental part of our marketing plan and we now generate around 150 leads every week. Search engine optimisation and a newly designed site have seen a 200% increase in leads which have been shared across the Conservatory Outlet dealer network. There’s a large proportion of the nation that are internet savvy and it is a perfect platform in which to engage the potential customer. However it’s also a perfect vehicle in which to engage an industry…

Renegade Conservatory Guy

With an industry that at best has been described as incestuous where rumour and comment spread like wildfire, I decided to create an ‘anonymous’ blog, well I thought so at the time. We’ve all got our opinions about the industry and may well share that within our own industry network, yet are afraid to publicise this on a more global basis, until now.

Renegade Conservatory Guy (RCG) is not about me, but an opportunity for the industry to add comment to existing posts or even use it as a vehicle to provide further content to the blog. Given the fact that it can be updated 24/7 (and often is) the latest industry rumour and happenings can get posted and with over 500 hits and a number of comments each day it seems to be well received. It has also been used as a forum in which to interview key people within the industry. So what relevance does it have to a marketing campaign?

There are a number of links within the website and it makes a positive contribution to web traffic for our Conservatory Outlet site, the promotion of our brand and even our very own Conservatory Outlet blog (www.conservatoryoutlet.co.uk/blog). It also displays our affection for an industry that we all care about.

Natural Born Sellers

When I mentioned earlier about harnessing more unique marketing opportunities I was referring to our TV appearance on Natural Born Sellers in October. The programme was aired on Thursday 9th October 2008 and featured Conservatory Outlet’s West Yorkshire Windows. The existing sales force was replaced for four days with a team of 8 ruthless professionals from ITV’s latest TV reality show.

Although these contestants closed a large number of sales we also learnt the value of our brand. Our showroom support materials and brochures were a fundamental part of the selling process without which these double glazing novices would have struggled. This clearly showed the value of investing in strong support materials and a brand.

On the back of the show West Yorkshire Windows has experienced an increase in the number of sales leads through the internet and though showroom drop-in’s. The show has made a positive impact on the business, clearly there’s no such thing as bad publicity.

Over the last year I have covered a number of topics and learnt through our own experiences at Conservatory Outlet. For us the brand is about generating respect, consistent leads and building a very effective bolt on brand for our dealer network. Given our impressive sales performance over the year it’s something that we’ll continue to build on in 2009. In the meantime log on to RCG (www.renegadeconservatoryguy.co.uk) over the festive period or if you have a spare hour log on to ITV.com and watch Natural Born Sellers episode 2. It’s a far better portrayal of our industry than The Armstrongs!

Conservatory Outlet continues to expand through new dealers, new showrooms and increased sales from the existing dealer network. Sales are already up 14% on 2007 and the future prospects look excellent.

There are now 15 Conservatory Outlet showrooms, primarily across the North and Midlands and the company is now actively looking to expand into the South of England. Conservatory Outlet is a bolt on brand and that means a wide range of branded literature, showroom support materials and an impressive website which generates around 120 leads a week for the dealer network.

One such dealer, Andy Ibbeson from Conservatory, Window & Door Outlet is quick to point out the benefits: “We benefit from an actively promoted brand and a high quality product, the two basic ingredients for success for any installation company. We even have our own dedicated Visual Effect website at www.conservatorywindowdooroutlet.co.uk that fits in with the Conservatory Outlet brand. We’ve been able to measure the impact of this on our business, put simply it has played a major part to play and will do so for the future.”

Matthew Glover, managing director of Conservatory Outlet concludes: “The more we invest in the brand the more we seem to get out of it. Our longstanding dealers are performing well and our new customers are quickly reaping the benefits of the bolt on brand. We’d like to take this business model to other parts of the UK and will be looking to help make successful installation companies even more successful in the near future with the Conservatory Outlet brand.”