Architectural Designers in Chichester
Every home we design starts with how the family living in it actually uses it. We have worked that way for 26 years, and in Chichester and along its coast, from Fishbourne and Bosham to Itchenor and the Witterings, it also means designing for the views, the weather off the harbour and the planning rules of the Chichester Harbour National Landscape.
Our recent work includes Saltmist, a coastal home and garden on the edge of Pagham Harbour, and a new home in the South Downs that was refused in 2020 and allowed on appeal in 2021. Alongside these are extensions across Chichester District, and gardens designed to suit the way our clients live.
Services
Designed, approved and built
New homes, extensions and remodels around Chichester all start with the same question: what will the council, the conservation area or the Chichester Harbour National Landscape allow? We answer it before anything is drawn in detail: a measured survey, a design that suits the street or the shoreline, and a planning application that has already met the likely objections. Then the building regulations drawings and, if you want one point of contact, construction management through to completion. Interiors and gardens can also be designed alongside the house, rather than after it when it may be too late.
For homes and businesses in Chichester, Bosham, Fishbourne, Itchenor and the Witterings, we cover it all: Architectural and Interior Design, Planning and Appeals, Landscape Design, Building Control, Project Management and Construction, plus the topographical and ecology surveys an application can need. We also design commercial premises and their interiors.
Recent Projects
SALTMIST, PAGHAM HARBOUR
CHICHESTER DISTRICT NEW BUILD
THE GATE HOUSE
Looking for an Architect in Chichester?
Bespoke family and holiday homes, from Chichester to Selsey, the Witterings and Bosham.
People come to us for a home designed around them: a family home or a holiday home on the coast, shaped by the way they live rather than a standard plan. Alchemy House of Design are Architectural, Interior and Landscape Designers, and we can take a project the whole way or just part of it, from measured survey and design to the planning application, building regulations drawings and construction management. We work across Chichester and its coast, including Selsey, East Wittering, West Wittering, Bracklesham, Birdham, Itchenor, Bosham, Chidham, Fishbourne, Dell Quay and Southbourne.
Who decides planning applications in Chichester?
For Chichester city, the harbour villages and the coast, Chichester District Council is the planning authority. It works to the Chichester Local Plan 2021 to 2039, which the council adopted on 19 August 2025. The northern part of the district lies inside the South Downs National Park, where the National Park's own Local Plan applies instead.
Do you need planning permission for an extension near Chichester Harbour?
Often, yes. Chichester Harbour is a National Landscape, and inside it householder permitted development rights are tighter than elsewhere: side extensions, rear extensions of more than one storey, roof extensions and cladding all need planning permission. Chichester Harbour Conservancy is consulted on every planning application within the National Landscape, and the council has a joint planning document for the harbour, adopted in 2017, setting out what it expects of new buildings and extensions. Design for the shoreline matters from the first sketch.
Can you replace an existing house on the coast with a new one?
Yes, subject to planning approval and the constraints of the site, flood risk in particular. Replacing a dated house or bungalow with a new home designed around the way you live is well within what we do. We start by establishing what the site allows and what the council will expect, then design a home that makes the most of the plot and the views.
What does building on the coast change?
More than most people expect, and most of it has to be decided before the design is drawn. Salt air attacks steel, so beams, lintels, wall ties and fixings need more corrosion resistance the nearer a house is to the sea. How near is near enough to matter depends on the site, and it is one of the first things we look at. Standard hinges, handles and window fixings fail quickly in salt air, so the small parts are specified as carefully as the frames. Strong winds off the coast shape the choice of cladding and how a roof is covered and fixed. Shingle, sand and clay each need a different kind of foundation, and the water table can sit close to the surface. Gardens need planting and materials that stand up to salt, sun and wind, and coastal grasses earn their place.
Will flood risk affect a coastal planning application?
Often, yes. Flood risk is looked at closely on applications near the coast, and it is far easier to design it out at the start than to fix it once the plans are drawn. That can mean raised floor levels and a layout planned around the flood risk from the first sketch.
What if your home is in a conservation area or listed?
Chichester District has 85 conservation areas and more than 3,200 listed buildings. In the city itself, the conservation area appraisal describes what officers look for: red brick, knapped flint, steep roofs of handmade clay tiles, Welsh slate and Georgian sash windows. Many of the district's most historic conservation areas also have Article 4 directions, which mean that even replacing windows or altering a garden wall can need planning permission.
Do you design commercial projects in Chichester?
Yes. We design interior layouts for shops, offices and other businesses, and interiors for holiday lets. We also prepare the consents commercial work often needs: advertisement consent for signage, listed building consent, drawings for landlord approval, and planning permission for shopfront changes in a conservation area.
What if a planning application is refused?
Refused is not always the end. Our Fernhurst new build was refused in 2020. Working alongside the appeal team, we built the evidence and refined the design, and in June 2021 a Planning Inspector allowed the appeal.
How do we get started?
Call us on 01428 658703. After a quick conversation about what you have in mind, we arrange a free site visit, then send you a fee proposal.
Where we work
Haslemere · Hindhead · Midhurst · Fernhurst · Liphook · Godalming · Petersfield · Farnham · Petworth · Guildford · Chichester · Selsey · The Witterings · Bracklesham · Birdham · Itchenor · Bosham · Fishbourne
Architect or Architectural Designer: which does your project need?
Awards & Press
The Waverly Design Awards Scheme
New Buildings - The Tannery Godalming
LABC Building Excellence Awards 2018
The Tannery, Godalming - Regional Finalist
Country Homes & Interiors
The Gatehouse Feb 2023
International Property Awards
Best Development in Surrey 2020
House Builder Awards
Finalist 2021
COUNTRY HOMES & INTERIORS
(Click on page to turn)