Exeter • Devon • EX Postcodes
Looking for a structural engineer in Exeter? We provide fixed-fee structural calculations from £150 for wall removals, RSJ beam design, loft conversions and home extensions across Exeter and Devon. Every pack is Building Regulations-ready for Exeter City Council. Most jobs delivered within 24 to 48 hours.
We work with Exeter's varied housing stock — Georgian and Regency terraces in St Leonard's, Victorian streets in Heavitree and St Thomas, interwar semis in Pinhoe and Whipton, and Devon's distinctive cob and stone construction in older rural properties. No site visit is needed.
Fixed fees from £150. Reply within 24hrs.
We quote a fixed price for every structural engineer Exeter job before we start. Fees depend on the complexity and scope of the project.
| Service | Typical Fee (Exeter, 2026) | What Is Included |
|---|---|---|
| Wall removal RSJ — single beam | £150 to £260 | Beam sizing, padstone design, Building Regs pack |
| Loft conversion structural design | £260 to £550 | Ridge beam, floor joists, dormer steels, full pack |
| Home extension Building Regs pack | £345 to £595 | Beams, foundations, roof structure, full pack |
| Chimney breast removal | £195 to £395 | Gallows bracket or beam, padstone, load transfer |
| Complex or cob wall projects | POA | Individually quoted once we have details |
| Structural report / inspection | £400 to £900 | Cracks, settlement, pre-purchase, listed buildings |
We cover all common residential structural engineering across Exeter and Devon, with specific experience in cob, stone and lime mortar construction.
Wall removal and RSJ beam design from £150. We check the actual span, tributary floor widths, imposed loads and dead loads from the construction above. Padstones are sized based on the actual bearing pressure of the masonry — not a rule of thumb. See our wall removal guide.
Ridge beams, floor joists and dormer steels from £260 for loft conversions across Exeter and Devon. Exeter and Devon villas often have complex roof structures. We design the full structural upgrade and prepare a Building Regulations-ready pack. See our loft conversion guide.
Full structural packs for rear, side and wraparound extensions from £345, including beams, foundations and roof structure for Exeter City Council Building Control and all Devon local authorities. See our extension guide.
Cob is one of the most common traditional building materials in Devon and we have specific experience with it. The allowable bearing pressure for cob is lower than brick and loads must be spread across larger padstones. We factor this into every calculation rather than applying standard brick assumptions.
Exeter's Cathedral Quarter and Southernhay contain listed buildings where structural alterations require careful justification. Our calculations support both the Building Regulations application and listed building consent requirements, written clearly enough for conservation officers to follow without additional queries.
Structural inspection reports from £400 for cracks, settlement and pre-purchase assessments across Exeter and Devon. We identify whether problems are cosmetic or structural and produce a clear report your insurer or mortgage lender will accept. See our structural report guide.
Devon has building materials and construction methods you will not find in most of England. Our calculations are written with this in mind.
Cob is a load bearing material found across rural mid and east Devon, but it behaves very differently from brick or block under a concentrated beam reaction. Getting the padstone design right for a cob wall is not something every structural engineer considers, but it matters enormously. Put too much point load through cob and you can cause serious damage to a wall that has stood for three hundred years.
Our calculations for cob properties use specific bearing pressure assumptions for the material, not generic brick masonry defaults. Padstone areas are sized accordingly.
Exeter's Victorian terraces in Heavitree and St Thomas have party walls that sometimes straddle property boundaries, and the original lime mortar bed joints in these streets are softer than modern cement mortar. That affects bearing pressure calculations. Some properties in the Cathedral Quarter and around Southernhay are listed or sit within a conservation area, which brings additional requirements for any structural alteration.
If a wall is a party wall with your neighbour, that needs to be flagged to a party wall surveyor before work starts. We can confirm which elements are relevant so your surveyor has the technical information they need.
We are a structural engineer Devon homeowners and builders use across the whole county — not just Exeter city. Same fixed fees and turnaround everywhere.
Because all our work is done remotely from your photos and measurements, there is no additional charge for working outside Exeter city centre. A cob cottage in mid Devon costs the same to calculate as a Victorian terrace in Heavitree.
Most general structural engineers in the South West take on commercial and site investigation work alongside residential jobs. That means residential calculations often sit at the back of the queue. We work exclusively on residential structural calculations, which is why our turnarounds are measured in hours rather than weeks.
We prepare packs that Exeter City Council Building Control and all Devon local authorities expect to see. East Devon District Council, Mid Devon District Council, Teignbridge and others all have their own inspectors — our packs are clear enough that they rarely need to come back with queries.
Our packs include clear drawings with every set of calculations. Your builder knows exactly what to order and how to install it on site. We avoid unnecessary jargon and include installation notes with every beam design.
Seven steps from enquiry to Building Regulations submission. Everything is done remotely — no site visit needed.
Send us photos of the wall or area, your postcode and a rough sketch showing what you want to do.
We identify the property type and construction — brick, stone, cob or a mix — and confirm what needs designing.
We establish what is above the opening — floors, roof structure, any walls that continue upwards.
We calculate the dead and live loads acting on the proposed beam position.
We size the steel beam and run bending, shear, deflection and restraint checks.
We design padstones or bearing plates to suit the actual masonry type — brick, stone or cob — at each end.
We deliver the complete Building Regulations pack by email within 24 to 48 hours for wall removals, 3 to 5 days for larger projects.
Recent feedback from homeowners and builders across Exeter and Devon.
"Opening up a kitchen in our Heavitree terrace. SECalcs checked the party wall situation, sized the RSJ correctly and Building Control had no queries at all."
Tom W, Heavitree, Exeter
"We have a cob farmhouse in mid Devon. They understood the material straight away and the padstone design was specific to cob, not just standard brick assumptions."
Helen F, Mid Devon
"Loft conversion in St Leonard's. Pack arrived within 48 hours, drawings were clear and our builder said the installation notes were exactly what he needed."
David S, St Leonard's, Exeter
Our structural engineer Exeter service covers the city and the surrounding county. No extra charge for working outside the city centre.
Common questions from Exeter and Devon homeowners, builders and developers.
You need a structural engineer in Exeter whenever you are removing or altering a load bearing element of your home. That includes knocking through walls, installing a steel beam, converting a loft, building an extension, or removing a chimney breast. Exeter City Council Building Control requires structural calculations for all of these projects before approving the work.
Structural engineer Exeter fees start at £150 for a wall removal RSJ on a short span. Loft conversion packs run from £260 to £550 and home extension calculations from £345 to £595. All fees are fixed before we start and there are no additional charges once work is underway. Full guide: structural engineer costs UK.
Yes. Cob is one of the most common traditional building materials in Devon and we have specific experience with it. The allowable bearing pressure for cob is lower than for brick, and loads need to be spread across a larger padstone area. We factor all of this into the calculations rather than applying standard brick masonry assumptions.
Most structural engineer Exeter wall removal and RSJ calculations are delivered within 24 to 48 hours of receiving your photos and measurements. Larger projects such as loft conversions and extensions are usually ready within three to five working days. If you have a specific deadline, tell us when you get in touch and we will let you know whether we can meet it.
Yes. Our structural engineer Exeter service covers the whole of Devon including Exmouth, Sidmouth, Tiverton, Crediton, Okehampton, Newton Abbot and Torquay. The fee is the same whether the property is in Exeter city centre or in a village in mid Devon, and so is the turnaround time.
No. Everything is done remotely. You send us clear photos of the area, a rough sketch and some basic measurements. We contact you if we need to clarify anything before we start. The finished structural pack is delivered to you by email within 24 to 48 hours for most jobs.
Yes. Exeter has a number of listed buildings, particularly in the Cathedral Quarter and around Southernhay. Our structural calculations support both the Building Regulations application and any listed building consent requirements. We write the calculations clearly enough that the conservation officer and Building Control officer can both follow the reasoning without needing to ask for more information.
If the wall is shared with an adjoining property, that needs to be notified to a party wall surveyor before work starts — this is separate from the structural calculation. We can confirm which elements of the design are relevant to the party wall so your surveyor has the technical information they need. The structural calculation and the party wall notice are two separate things.
Fill in the form and we will review your details and confirm a fixed fee. We are engineers, not salespeople.
Fixed fees from £150, 24 to 48 hour turnaround, Building Regulations-ready every time. Call us on 07359 267907 or fill in the quote form above and we will come back to you the same working day.
