Builders in Kennington

If you’re comparing builders in Kennington, start with the work already standing in the village. We’ve built two new homes here, Wayside House and Sun and Abbey House, and completed a full refurbishment with extensions on Upper Road. Most firms quoting for Kennington work have never built in Kennington. We can point at three front doors.

The connection goes back further than the order book. Henry and John Lynch grew up in Kennington, and the family’s original firm, Lynch Building Contractors, is based on Bagley Wood Road. Lynch Brother Homes works out of Bradley Farm in Cumnor these days, a ten-minute drive away, so a site visit here never has to wait for a gap in the diary.

Builders in Kennington: three projects you can see in the village

Wayside House is a high-end new build in Kennington that we constructed and managed from the ground up. Sun and Abbey House is a second new home in the village, a characterful build you’d struggle to pick out as new at all. Two completed new houses in one Oxfordshire village is unusual for any builder; both project pages carry full photo galleries.

On Upper Road we carried out a full property refurbishment with modern extensions, taking an existing Kennington home apart and putting it back together properly. New house, extended house or rebuilt house: whichever your project is closest to, there’s a finished example of it within walking distance.

Planning permission in Kennington: Green Belt, infill and the Vale

Kennington sits in an unusual planning position and it catches people out. The village has Oxford postcodes, but planning applications go to Vale of White Horse District Council in Abingdon, not Oxford City Council. The Local Plan classes Kennington as a Larger Village under Policy CP3, and the village is inset within the Oxford Green Belt: the built-up area is excluded from Green Belt restrictions, while the fields and woodland around it are not.

In practice, that split decides what’s straightforward and what isn’t:

There’s also change coming. The adopted Local Plan allocates land for around 270 new homes south of Kennington, accessed from Kennington Road, and the parish has no adopted neighbourhood plan, so district policy leads. Having taken two Kennington new builds and an extension project through this system, we can tell you at the first site visit whether your idea is likely to sail through, need negotiation, or struggle.

Built for Kennington’s houses and plots

The village occupies a narrow strip between Bagley Wood and the Thames meadows, and that geography has shaped everything built here since. The housing stock is largely twentieth century, which changes the job compared with the stone villages further out: no conservation officer to satisfy, but plenty of interwar and post-war construction that needs opening up, insulating and re-servicing to work as a modern family home. Bungalows and chalet bungalows in the village lend themselves well to loft conversions and first-floor additions, often the most cost-effective way to add a bedroom without losing garden.

Extensions, lofts, renovations and new homes

We’re a full-service firm, so the trades that make or break a project, from groundworks to liquid screed and decorating, are our own people rather than subcontractors found at short notice. For Kennington homeowners the most relevant services are home extensions, loft conversions, whole-house renovation and new builds, the last of which we’ve now done twice in this village.

As a guide, single-storey extensions typically run £30,000 to £50,000, two-storey extensions £55,000 to £90,000 and up, and loft conversions £35,000 to £55,000, with the final figure depending on size, specification and ground conditions. New build costs generally fall between £1,500 and £3,000 per square metre. We price from detailed drawings and break quotes down line by line, so you can see where the money goes before anything is agreed.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need planning permission for an extension in Kennington?

Often not. Kennington isn’t a conservation area, so standard permitted development rights usually cover modest single-storey rear extensions and many loft conversions. Bigger schemes need a householder application to Vale of White Horse District Council. We assess which route applies at the first site visit.

Does the Green Belt stop me extending my Kennington home?

No. The village itself is inset from the Oxford Green Belt, so homes within the built-up area follow normal planning rules. Green Belt policy only bites on land outside the village edge, where new buildings face much stricter tests.

Which council handles planning in Kennington?

Vale of White Horse District Council, based in Abingdon. Kennington has Oxford OX1 postcodes but sits outside the city boundary, a distinction that regularly confuses applicants. We prepare and manage applications to the Vale from drawings through to decision.

Have you actually built in Kennington?

Yes, three times over. Wayside House and Sun and Abbey House are both new homes we built in the village, and we carried out a full refurbishment with extensions on Upper Road. All three are on our projects pages with photography.

How much does an extension cost in Kennington?

Single-storey extensions typically cost £30,000 to £50,000 and two-storey extensions £55,000 to £90,000 or more, depending on size and specification. Loft conversions generally run £35,000 to £55,000. We provide itemised fixed quotes after a site visit, which costs nothing.

Can a new house be built on a plot in Kennington?

Sometimes. Because Kennington is classed as a Larger Village and is inset from the Green Belt, limited infill within the built-up area can gain permission. Success depends on plot size, access and design. We’ve taken two Kennington new builds from planning to completion.

Talk to us about your Kennington project

Lynch Brother Homes is TrustMark registered and a member of the Federation of Master Builders, with a 50-strong team led day to day by Henry and John Lynch. Henry was named Young Business Person of the Year 2025 at the Oxfordshire Business Awards; John still visits every live site. Call 01865 420063 or send us your project details and we’ll come and look at the job. It won’t cost you anything, and growing up here means we’ll probably know the house before you’ve finished describing it.