Daylight and Sunlight Assessments in Liverpool

Liverpool gives us two very different kinds of job. In the city centre, around Victoria Street, Dale Street and the business district, it is the conversion of old commercial buildings into flats, where the streets are narrow, the buildings opposite are tall, and Liverpool City Council wants proof that the new rooms will get enough daylight. In the suburbs, Aigburth, Woolton, Allerton and Wavertree, it is extensions, outbuildings and flat conversions in large Victorian and Edwardian houses, where a single neighbour's garden or a single new room can decide the application.

The council is clear about what it wants: a report to the 2022 BRE guide, and for new flats an internal daylight assessment to BRE 2022 and BS EN 17037. On prior approval applications it will say plainly when it expects one and set a short deadline for confirming it is coming. Our main daylight and sunlight assessment page explains what each type of report contains.

Recent daylight and sunlight assessments in Liverpool

Victoria Road, Aigburth: a phased route to a two-storey outbuilding

A homeowner wanted to rebuild a rear outbuilding as two storeys beside the neighbouring house, and pre-application feedback asked for an assessment of that neighbour. We tested the existing building, an earlier single-storey design and the two-storey proposal. Against the existing baseline the two-storey version fell short of the BRE sun-on-ground guideline in the neighbour's garden, while the single-storey version met the guidelines. The owner built the single-storey version first, and we later re-based the study on the as-built building so the upper storey could be tested on its own for a separate application.

Victoria Street, city centre: internal daylight for a prior approval

A prior approval application to convert a city-centre commercial building on Victoria Street into flats. Liverpool City Council was concerned that the narrow surrounding streets would leave a number of habitable rooms short of light, and said that without a BRE 2022 daylight report the application was likely to be refused for lack of information. We modelled the building and the street canyon around it and assessed every habitable room to BRE 2022 and BS EN 17037, so the architect could respond within the prior approval timetable.

Allerton Road, Woolton: meeting the targets without changing the building's character

A new flat in an existing building in Woolton, where the officer wanted evidence of adequate light to all habitable rooms and had asked for a side window to be made smaller. Any new openings had to keep the elevation in character. As submitted, the living space and the bedroom fell short of the targets. We tested several window options: high-level slot windows facing the car park brought the living space within the guidelines, and moving the bedroom to the other side of the plan let it meet the guideline. The options went to the consultant to choose the best route.

What Liverpool planning officers look for

Applications are decided by Liverpool City Council against the Liverpool Local Plan 2013–2033, adopted in January 2022. Its design and housing policies require a high standard of design that protects the living conditions of existing and future occupiers, including daylight, sunlight and outlook. A new Local Plan running to 2043 is being prepared; until it is adopted, the 2022 plan is the basis for decisions.

The council's supplementary planning documents, including its Housing Design Guide, add detail on layout and spacing in new residential development. For the measurable tests the council relies on BRE BR 209 (2022 edition), and for new homes on the BRE 2022 internal daylight method, which follows BS EN 17037.

For office and commercial conversions under Class MA and the other prior approval routes, the test is adequate natural light in all habitable rooms. In the narrow streets of the commercial district that is a genuine question, and the council asks for evidence early. The policy documents are on the council's plan-making pages and its supplementary documents and guidance page.

When you need an assessment in Liverpool

• Prior approval conversions of offices and commercial buildings in the business district, Victoria Street, Dale Street and the Ropewalks, where the council has asked for a BRE 2022 daylight report
• Flat conversions in large Victorian and Edwardian houses in Aigburth, Woolton, Allerton and Mossley Hill, where new windows are limited by the building's character
• Two-storey outbuildings, garden annexes and rear extensions next to a neighbour's garden
• Extensions in the terraced streets of Wavertree, Kensington, Anfield and Toxteth, where windows face each other across narrow yards
• Apartment schemes in the Baltic Triangle and along the waterfront

How we work

We model the building and its surroundings in 3D, run the tests and share the results before the report is written, so there is time to try a different window or layout if a room falls short. The fee is fixed and agreed up front; the report usually takes 4–5 working days from final drawings, and we can work to a prior approval deadline. For neighbour impact, the tests are:

• Vertical Sky Component (VSC): how much sky a neighbouring window can see
• No-Sky Line (NSL), or daylight distribution: how far daylight reaches into the room
• Annual Probable Sunlight Hours (APSH): annual and winter sunlight to windows facing within 90 degrees of south
• Sun on ground: whether at least half of a garden gets two hours of sun on 21 March

For new flats we use the BRE 2022 internal method instead: the proportion of each room that reaches the daylight target, and sunlight exposure. See our VSC, NSL and APSH page and our BRE guidelines page for the detail.

Frequently asked questions in Liverpool

The council has asked for a BRE 2022 daylight report on our prior approval. How quickly can you respond?

We can usually confirm scope and a fixed fee the same day, so you can reply to the council within its deadline, and the report normally follows in 4–5 working days. We see the same requests on town-centre conversions in Reading.

We can't add new windows because of the building's character. Is there still a way to meet the targets?

Often, yes. High-level windows, matching an existing opening, or swapping which side of the plan a room sits on can make the difference. We test the options and tell you which ones work.

Can we build in stages to keep the neighbour's garden within the guidelines?

Sometimes. If a smaller first phase meets the guidelines, the later phase is tested against what is actually built at the time, so the assessment reflects the real starting point.

Get a fixed-fee quote

Send us your plans and any council letter through our contact page, or get an instant figure from the price calculator. You can also call Nick on 01962 809155 or email nick@sunlightassessments.co.uk.