Getting the order of works right means nothing finished has to be opened up again. Plan the work first, get any building warrant granted, then build from the structure outwards and finish with decoration.
A renovation in an Edinburgh home usually runs in this order:
- Survey and design
- Building warrant and any other permissions
- Strip-out
- Structural work
- First fix: plumbing, electrics and heating
- Insulation and soundproofing
- Plastering, then drying time
- Second fix, kitchens and bathrooms
- Joinery
- Flooring
- Decoration and snagging
The rule behind the list is simple. Work that ends up hidden goes in before the surface that hides it. Anything that needs approval is approved before work starts. Wet trades such as plastering and tiling finish before the dry finishes that water would damage.
Each project bends this order a little. A kitchen may need its flooring before the units go in. A bathroom may need its supplier design checked first. But if a step moves, there should be a reason, and everyone should know what it is.
Typical order of works
| Stage | What happens | Why it comes here | Edinburgh example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Survey and design | The home is measured and its condition is checked. The layout, kitchen and bathroom designs and the scope of work are agreed. | Every later step depends on these decisions. Changing them mid-build costs the most. | A tenement flat may have old pipework or earlier alterations hidden in its floor voids. Ask early whether the building is listed or in a conservation area. |
| 2. Building warrant and permissions | A building warrant, planning permission or listed building consent is applied for where the work needs one. | Some work cannot legally start until approval is granted. | Opening a load-bearing wall in a tenement flat needs a warrant. Changing sash and case windows in a conservation area may need planning permission. |
| 3. Strip-out | Old kitchens, bathrooms, floor finishes and damaged plaster come out. | Opening up shows the real condition before anything new is fitted. | Lath and plaster ceilings and cornicing are protected or removed with care. The shared stair is protected and neighbours are told what to expect. |
| 4. Structural work | Beams, openings, joist repairs and any repairs to the building’s structure. | New services and finishes must sit on a sound, settled structure. | Joist ends set into damp stone walls can be decayed and may need repair before new floors go down. |
| 5. First fix | New pipes, cables, heating runs and waste routes are installed before walls and floors are closed. | These are hard to reach once plastered or boarded over. | Tenement floor voids are often the only route for new pipes and cables, so routes are planned before boards go back. |
| 6. Insulation and soundproofing | Insulation goes into walls, roofs and floors. Sound insulation goes between floors and rooms. | It sits inside the build-up, so it has to go in before linings and floors. | Sound travels easily between tenement flats. Solid stone walls need materials that let moisture move, or damp can become trapped. |
| 7. Plastering and drying | Walls and ceilings are boarded, plastered or skimmed. Then they are left to dry. | Paint and wallpaper fail on damp plaster. | Lime plaster suits many stone walls and takes longer to dry than gypsum plaster. |
| 8. Second fix, kitchens and bathrooms | Sockets, switches, radiators, sanitaryware, kitchen units and worktops are fitted. Bathrooms are tiled. | It needs finished walls and completed first fix behind it. | A small tenement kitchen or bathroom leaves little room for error, so measurements are checked again against the plastered walls. |
| 9. Joinery | Doors, architraves, skirtings, fitted storage and window work. | Joinery is scribed to finished walls and set to known floor heights. | Original sash and case windows can often be overhauled rather than replaced. |
| 10. Flooring | Floorboards are restored, or new floor finishes are laid. | The heavy, wet and dusty work is over, so the new floor is not damaged. | Original pine floorboards in tenements and villas can often be repaired and refinished. |
| 11. Decoration and snagging | Painting and papering, then a full check of the finished work. Small faults are listed and put right. | It is the last finish, applied once nothing else needs to be cut in. | Where a warrant was needed, the completion certificate is submitted to the council. |
Building warrants: what must happen before work starts
In Scotland, a building warrant is permission from the council to carry out certain building work. In Edinburgh, it is granted by City of Edinburgh Council.
A warrant must be granted before these kinds of work start:
- structural work
- forming or closing an opening in a load-bearing wall
- loft and garage conversions
- a change of use, such as turning a commercial space into a home
Starting that work without a warrant is an offence. A warrant that has been applied for, but not granted, is not enough.
At the end of the work, a completion certificate is submitted to the council. The council must accept it. Until it does, the warrant process is not finished. That can matter when you later sell the property.
Not every internal change needs a warrant. Some smaller work falls within exceptions. The work must still meet the building regulations. The current rules are set out in the Scottish Government’s April 2026 Domestic Technical Handbook. Our guide on when interior alterations in Edinburgh need a building warrant covers this in more detail.
Three things are often confused with a warrant:
- Planning permission controls what is built and how it looks, especially from outside. It is a separate approval.
- Listed building consent is needed for work that affects the character of a listed building, inside or out. It is also separate.
- An architect’s drawings are not a warrant. They are usually what the warrant application is based on.
The homeowner’s appointed architect or warrant professional confirms the route and makes the application. Sweet Homes checks its construction sequence against the approved information. We are often asked to quote for removing or moving a wall before that information is ready. We do not treat that part of the programme, or its start date, as settled until the warrant is granted.
Why the order prevents rework
Most rework comes from doing a good job at the wrong time.
A typical example: the new floor is down, the skirtings are back on and the room is decorated. Then someone takes a proper look at the heating route or the insulation underneath. Up comes the floor. There was nothing wrong with the flooring itself. The decision underneath it was simply never made.
A smaller version happens with walls. Stable wallpaper is stripped because the room will be painted. The wall underneath then needs substantial repair or a full skim coat, but the quote only allowed for stripping and painting. Painting over stable paper can sometimes be the more sensible choice. Where a client wants a newly skimmed finish, we name the preparation before stripping starts: local repair, a full skim or both.
Edinburgh buildings that change the order
Older Edinburgh homes add steps that a generic list of trades leaves out.
- Shared stairs and neighbours. In a tenement, deliveries, waste and noisy work all pass through a shared stair. Protection and access are planned before strip-out.
- Factor and common repairs. If the roof, gutters or stonework need common repairs, ask your factor or co-owners early. Leaks from the outside can spoil new plaster and decoration inside.
- Stone walls and damp. Find and deal with the cause of any damp before plastering. New plaster over an active damp problem will fail. Our guide on why damp keeps returning in Edinburgh tenement homes explains the common causes.
- Hidden materials. Old boxing and layered floors can hide previous pipe routes and repairs. Where building fabric will be disturbed, the asbestos information and survey must suit the proposed work. The HSE explains the requirement for refurbishment surveys.
If you are planning a tenement renovation, these points usually belong at the very start of the programme.
Kitchens, bathrooms and floors: where the order bends
Bathrooms. We ask the client to have the supplier prepare the bathroom design first. We then visit and check that design in the actual room. The drawing may go back for changes once it meets the real dimensions and pipe routes. That check happens before we agree the working programme. We also agree how toilet and washing facilities will work while the bathroom is out of use. Our bathroom renovation service in Edinburgh explains the full scope.
Kitchens and fitted furniture. Sweet Homes does not use a blanket rule that floors always go before joinery, or always after it. We take the order from the drawing, the chosen floor system and the manufacturer’s fitting instructions.
Who buys what. Sweet Homes supplies and fits. If you have already chosen a kitchen, bathroom suite, tiles or flooring, we buy those exact items and fit them as part of one job. One firm is then responsible for both the product and the fitting.
Checking work before it is covered up
Once pipes, cables or structural work are hidden behind a wall or floor, checking them becomes a different job.
Before anything is covered, our site team checks the installed work against the drawings. Structural work is checked against the structural specification. Where an architect is appointed, we invite them to carry out their own inspection.
This is our own coordination check. It does not replace the responsibilities of the electrician, plumber, architect, structural engineer or building standards surveyor. Any required inspection or certificate still has its own place in the programme.
Opening up sometimes changes an earlier assumption. We leave room in the programme for that second look.
Planning a renovation in Edinburgh
The order above applies whether you are planning flat renovations in Edinburgh or a whole house. For several linked rooms, our managed home renovations in Edinburgh bring the trades and decisions together in one programme. Our renovation cost guide explains how budgets are put together. If you live in the home during the work, see our guide to phased renovation planning for busy households.
To talk through your project, send Sweet Homes your proposed scope, drawings and any supplier designs. We will arrange a phone call to go through the order of works, then a site visit where it helps and a written quote. For major projects, allow at least four weeks from your first enquiry.