Builders in Epsom: Resmor's guide to building in Epsom and Ewell

Epsom is known for the Downs and the Derby, but most building work here happens in quieter streets: the 1930s semis of Stoneleigh and Ewell, the Victorian and Edwardian houses round the town centre, and the newer homes on the old hospital sites at Horton and Long Grove. This guide sets out what is particular about building in Epsom and Ewell, and how to choose a builder for the job.

It summarises what the council and other public bodies publish, as at October 2026. Rules and fees change, so confirm the detail with the council before you rely on it.

Building in Epsom and Ewell

Epsom and Ewell is the smallest borough in Surrey, with about 81,000 people at the 2021 Census. It runs from the Surrey side of Worcester Park in the north, through Stoneleigh, Ewell and Epsom, to Langley Vale and the Downs in the south. Its neighbours are Kingston, Sutton, Mole Valley and Reigate and Banstead.

The houses follow the order in which each part was built:

• Stoneleigh and much of Ewell: semi-detached houses of the 1930s. Stoneleigh was built almost entirely between 1933 and 1939, after its station opened. Rear extensions, loft conversions and kitchens opened into the garden are the usual projects on these houses.
• Round the town centre and College Road: Victorian and Edwardian houses, with older cottages among them, many of them inside conservation areas.
• Horton, Long Grove and the other hospital sites: homes built since the late 1990s on the five former hospitals known as the Epsom Cluster. Each of the five is now a conservation area.

Semi-detached houses are the most common kind of home in the borough: 36% of homes at the 2011 Census, with detached houses next at 27%.

Planning in Epsom and Ewell

Epsom and Ewell Borough Council decides planning applications for the borough. The plan in force is the Core Strategy (2007), the Development Management Policies Document (2015) and, for the town centre, Plan E (2011). A new Local Plan for 2022 to 2040 was submitted for examination in March 2025 and had not been adopted when this guide was written. The council’s Householder Applications Design Guidance sets out what it looks for in an extension.

From 1 April 2027 a new East Surrey Council takes over from Epsom and Ewell and four neighbouring councils, Reigate and Banstead among them. If your project will run past that date, check which council to apply to.

Conservation areas and Article 4 directions

The borough has 21 conservation areas, among them Epsom Town Centre, Church Street, College Road, Stamford Green, Woodcote, Ewell Village and the five hospital sites. In a conservation area, side extensions, roof extensions and two-storey rear extensions need a planning application.

Article 4 directions take away further permitted development rights in parts of these areas. Most apply to the parts of a house that face a street, a footpath or open space: porches and front extensions, roof materials and rooflights on the front slope, front windows and doors, hardstandings, and front walls and gates. They cover parts of Burgh Heath Road, Church Street, College Road, the Downs Road Estate, Ewell Village, Higher Green, Lintons Lane, Pikes Hill, Stamford Green, The Green at Ewell Downs Road and Worple Road. If you live in one of them, read the direction for your street before you plan anything at the front.

The borough also has around 300 listed buildings. Almost any alteration to one, inside or out, needs listed building consent.

The Green Belt

About two fifths of the borough is Green Belt, in a horseshoe round its south and west: Horton Country Park, Epsom Common, Woodcote Park and the Epsom and Walton Downs. Langley Vale, The Wells and Stamford Green sit within it, with the boundary drawn close round them. Permitted development still applies to most houses there, but a larger extension that needs an application is judged on how much it adds to the original house.

Building control

Building Regulations apply in Epsom as anywhere in England, and nearly every extension and loft conversion needs approval. Since April 2023 the council’s building control service has been run by Elmbridge Building Control Services Ltd, a company owned by Elmbridge Borough Council. You can use it or a registered building control approver. Either one inspects the work at set stages and issues a completion certificate at the end. Keep it with the deeds: a buyer’s solicitor will ask for it.

Ground, water and the street

• The ground changes across the borough. Chalk lies under the Downs to the south and east, and London Clay to the north and west. Clay shrinks and swells with the seasons, more so near trees, so a structural engineer sizes the foundations of an extension for the ground and the trees round it.
• Streams and flood warnings. The Environment Agency issues flood warnings for the Hogsmill at Ewell and Stoneleigh, the Green Lane Stream in Epsom and the Horton Stream at West Ewell. If your house is near one, check the flood map before an extension is designed: it can affect floor levels and drainage.
• Water and drains. SES Water supplies drinking water in the borough and Thames Water runs the sewers. A new connection to a public sewer, or building over one, needs the sewerage company’s agreement.
• Skips. A skip on the road needs a licence from Surrey County Council, and only registered skip firms can apply. In Epsom Market Place the borough council deals with it instead. The new East Surrey Council takes this over in April 2027.
• Race days. The Derby in early June and the other meetings on the Downs through the year bring heavy traffic round the racecourse. Worth knowing when deliveries are booked.

Choosing a builder in Epsom

The checks are the same as anywhere in Surrey:

• A visit before a price, then a written, itemised quotation
• A builder who checks whether your street is in a conservation area or under an Article 4 direction before the design is fixed
• Insurance certificates you can read
• Recent work you can see
• Changes priced in writing before they are built
• A written warranty on the work

Resmor in Epsom and Ewell

We are builders working across Surrey, South London and the surrounding areas, Epsom and Ewell included. We take on home improvements, from extensions and loft conversions to refurbishments, kitchens, bathrooms and landscaping, and property maintenance for homes and small businesses. Every job comes with a written, itemised quotation, project management with clear communication, inspections at every stage and a written warranty on our work. If a product fails, we make the manufacturer pay for the repair and the replacement.

We also work just over the border in Banstead, Nork and Burgh Heath.

Planning work in Epsom, or something to fix? Start an enquiry and we will call you back to arrange a visit.