New build houses, footings to handover
A complete new house, built to the drawings by one firm. We set out and dig the footings, bring the shell up in stone, block or timber frame, get the roof on, and carry the build through first fix, plastering and second fix to a finished home. The electricians, plumbers and tilers are booked by us, so you deal with one number from the first day on site to the day the keys go back.
Every new build, covered
Footings and groundwork
Setting out to the architect's drawings, excavation, concrete footings and ground floor slabs or beam and block, with the drainage runs laid before the walls go up.
Shell and roof
Cavity blockwork, local rubble stone, brick or timber frame, whichever the design calls for, then the roof structure, slate, clay tile or standing seam, and the cladding.
Every trade booked by us
Electrics, plumbing, heating, tiling, glazing and joinery are all programmed and managed by Chapman. One firm is responsible for the whole build, not a list of subcontractors you have to chase.
Plastering in house
Boarding, skimming and float finishes are done by our own plasterers, so the inside of the house is finished by the same people who built it and to the same programme.
Building control and sign off
We work to the approved plans and the building regulations pack, book the inspections at each stage and hand over with the completion certificate in place.
Green roofs, cladding and solar
Recent new builds have carried sedum roofs, vertical larch cladding, natural slate and roof mounted solar. If the design has something unusual on it, we have probably built it.
New Builds, on site and finished
Tap any photo to open it. The full set is on the homepage gallery.
Asked and answered
How long does a new build house take?
Most single houses take between nine and fourteen months from breaking ground to handover, depending on size, the build method and how much stonework there is. We give you a programme in writing before we start and update it at each stage, so you always know where the build is against the plan.
Do you build in stone, block or timber frame?
All three. Local Dorset rubble stone laid and pointed by hand, cavity blockwork with render or cladding over it, and timber frame with larch or other cladding. The design and the planning consent usually decide it, and we are happy to talk through the options before the drawings are finalised.
Can you manage the whole project or do I need to find the other trades?
We manage the whole project. The electrician, plumber, heating engineer, tiler and glazier are people we have worked with for years, and we book them in ourselves as the programme needs them. You get one point of contact and one invoice schedule.
Do you work with my architect and building control?
Yes. We build to your architect's drawings and the structural engineer's details, and we book the building control inspections at each stage. If a detail on the drawings will not work on site, we raise it with the architect before it is built rather than after.
Which areas do you build new houses in?
West Dorset and East Devon. Bridport, Axminster, Lyme Regis, Charmouth, Beaminster and the villages of the Marshwood Vale are all within our normal run, and we take on plots further out when the project suits.
New Builds across West Dorset and East Devon
Based between Axminster and Bridport, so both towns and everything between them is on the doorstep, and Lyme Regis, Beaminster, Seaton and Crewkerne are all a normal run. If your village is not on the list, ask anyway.
The rest of what we do
01Extensions
Single storey, two storey, side, rear and wrap around extensions across West Dorset and East Devon. We take...
02Renovations
Tired houses stripped back, re-planned and brought up to standard. We take on whole house renovations across...
03Listed Buildings
Repairs, renovations and conversions of listed buildings across West Dorset and East Devon. Rubble stone...