Conservatories in Manchester: planning, conservation areas and installers

Check which council you are in

Greater Manchester has ten councils, and each is the planning authority for its own area. A postal address in Stretford, Sale or Altrincham is in Trafford; Cheadle and Bramhall are in Stockport; Swinton and Eccles are in Salford. The planning data platform lists 34 conservation areas for Manchester City Council, 22 for Trafford, 37 for Stockport and 16 for Salford, so the answer to “is my road protected?” depends on the council, not the postcode town.

Permitted development in Manchester

In England a conservatory is treated as a house extension. Under the national permitted development rules (Class A of the General Permitted Development Order), a single-storey rear conservatory usually does not need a planning application if it stays within limits including: no more than 3 metres beyond the original rear wall of an attached house or 4 metres for a detached house; no more than 4 metres high; eaves no higher than 3 metres if it is within 2 metres of a boundary; and extensions and outbuildings together covering no more than half the garden. The government’s technical guidance also allows a larger single-storey rear extension (up to 6 metres, or 8 metres for a detached house) through the prior approval process, where neighbours are consulted. Flats and maisonettes have no householder permitted development rights, and a planning condition on your estate may have removed them. Our guide to how permitted development works explains the tests.

Conservation areas in Manchester

Manchester City Council’s 34 conservation areas include city-centre areas such as Castlefield, Ancoats and St John Street, but many are residential suburbs where conservatories are common:

• South Manchester: Victoria Park, Whalley Range, Albert Park and Didsbury St James (West Didsbury and Didsbury), Blackburn Park
• Chorlton: Chorlton, Chorlton Green and Chorltonville
• Withington: Withington, Ballbrook and Old Broadway
• North and east: Crumpsall Green, Crumpsall Lane, Hermitage Road, Crab Lane (Higher Blackley), Graver Lane (Newton Heath), Gore Brook Valley (Gorton)
• Also: Northenden, Brooklands, Rushford Park (Levenshulme)

Source: conservation area dataset (planning.data.gov.uk), read September 2026. Check the council’s own map for exact boundaries.

In a conservation area (“article 2(3) land”), national rules take away permitted development for side extensions, rear extensions of more than one storey and cladding, and the prior approval route for a 6 or 8 metre rear extension. A plain single-storey rear conservatory can still qualify, but a council can remove even that with an Article 4 direction, so ask the planning team before you commit. See conservatories in conservation areas and on listed buildings. Victorian villas in areas such as Victoria Park and Whalley Range may also be listed, and listed building consent (no fee) is then needed for works that affect their character.

Planning and building control fees in Manchester

Planning fees are national:

Manchester City Council says its building regulations charges are individually determined case by case, and it invites applicants to request a quote online. That means there is no fixed Manchester figure to quote here; ask the council and a registered building control approver for prices on the same drawings. For a comparison, published 2026 schedules elsewhere in England include £752.40 for an extension under 10 square metres (Birmingham’s provider Acivico) and £650 for full plans on the same size in Leeds, both including VAT.

Separately from planning, a conservatory in England is exempt from the building regulations only if it is at ground level, under 30 square metres of floor area, separated from the house by external-quality walls, doors or windows, not heated by an extension of the house’s heating system, and glazed to the safety glazing rules. Take out the dividing doors, run radiators into it, or build a solid-roofed orangery that fails the definition, and it becomes an extension that needs building control approval. See the building regulations exemption.

Typical private prices

We have not found a reliable price survey for Manchester alone, so use the national ranges in our UK conservatory costs guide. Checkatrade’s 2026 guide puts a 3.5m by 3.5m uPVC lean-to at £9,000–£11,500 and a uPVC Victorian at £12,000–£13,500, with timber versions costing more, and a 16 square metre hardwood orangery at about £30,000–£35,000. Any planning, prior approval or building control fees above come on top unless your quote says they are included.

How to choose an installer

• Who handles the paperwork. Ask in writing whether the firm will check permitted development, prepare any planning, prior approval or listed building consent application, and deal with building control if the design is not exempt. Our guide to surveys, contracts and payment stages covers what to agree.
• Glazing certification. If the job includes replacing windows or doors in the house itself, ask whether the installer is registered with a competent person scheme such as FENSA or Certass, and check the scheme’s own register. If not, building control has to sign that work off.
• Base, roof and drainage. Ask how the foundations are designed, what the roof is (glass, polycarbonate or solid), and where rainwater and any nearby drains go.
• Deposits and guarantees. Ask how much deposit is taken, whether it is protected, and what the guarantee covers if the firm stops trading.
• Compare like with like. Get at least two written quotes to the same specification.

Conservatory and orangery installers in Manchester

These firms appear in public business listings for the Manchester area. We have not checked their work, prices, insurance or memberships, and they have not paid to appear. Services are taken from the business name or listing only, so ask each firm what it actually builds.

You can also browse our conservatory options comparison or request quotes.

FAQs

Sources

• Planning Portal: Application Fees England, 1 April 2026 (planningportal.co.uk)
• Permitted development rights for householders: technical guidance (gov.uk)
• Conservation area dataset (planning.data.gov.uk)
• Building regulations charges (manchester.gov.uk)
• Full Plans (Domestic) Form (acivicogroup.co.uk)
• Apply for building regulations approval: fees (leeds.gov.uk)
• How much does a conservatory cost in the UK? 2026 prices (checkatrade.com)
• Orangery cost: Price breakdown 2026 (checkatrade.com)

Last checked: September 2026. Fees change, usually each April, so confirm the current figure with the council or installer before you rely on it.

Compare Conservatories is a comparison and referral service, not a conservatory installer. We do not design, build or approve conservatories, and a listing here is not a recommendation.