Wingecarribee Shire Council
Private building certifier in Berrima
Berrima is a historic village where homes are almost all detached and heritage controls apply precinct by precinct. Certification begins by finding your precinct and how your lot sits within the wider setting.
NSW 2577
Class 1 homes and Class 10 structures
Local rules
Building in historic Berrima
A village of houses
At the 2021 Census, Berrima counted 813 residents living across 390 private dwellings. Stand-alone houses made 99.6 per cent of those occupied, with no semis or flats recorded. Still, not all houses are Georgian or heritage listed, so check each lot individually.
Layers of heritage
The Wingecarribee Local Environmental Plan 2010 maps two conservation areas: one for the village's heritage, and a broader landscape area that guards how Berrima looks in its setting. Individual listings sit on top as another layer. A home can help form the setting without being listed itself. Look up your lot on the LEP's heritage map and the schedule that goes with it.
Village precincts
The Berrima Village DCP splits the village into named precincts. The area around West Oxley Street and Apple Street links the village with riverside parkland. In the Sutton Street area, new houses should not stand out when seen from the village. As a rule, the DCP keeps buildings to a single pitched-roof storey. Attic rooms are allowed if they fit inside the roof, and new buildings may rise no more than 3.6 metres from natural ground to the eaves.
Typical work
Common projects and how they get approved
What owners build here
Projects that suit Berrima include:
- Cottage alterations. Rework rooms inside while keeping the roof and street face.
- Rear additions or pavilions. Compare a modest extension with a separate linked pavilion rather than widening the house.
- Attic bedrooms. Test headroom in section before planning the room.
- Garages and sheds. The DCP prefers smaller detached buildings behind the house, not kit garages attached to the front.
A standard second storey runs straight into the village form controls. For any new building, prepare views from public places that show the roof and its setting, including the rear where land is visible.
How approval usually works
A CDC, a fast-track approval from a certifier, depends on what you are building and which code covers it. The Housing Code allows some detached outbuildings and pools in conservation areas, and certain alterations may fit the Housing Alterations Code. Listed properties face more limits. If not, you apply for a DA, which Wingecarribee Shire Council assesses, then get a construction certificate. Heritage conditions in the consent must carry through to the building plans. A development consent cannot replace the CC (construction certificate). Speak with your certifier before you swap a material or a structural detail, since that can alter what was approved. CertifiBuild can help you match the approval to the building work and inspect it properly.
Our services
From approval to sign-off.
One certifier for your whole Berrima job, from the first plan check to the occupation certificate.
Local questions
Questions we hear about this suburb.
No two lots in Berrima are the same. Give us your address and we will check every map that affects it.
See the council pageCould my Berrima renovation get a CDC?
Some work can, but sitting in a conservation area only answers part of the question. Berrima has two conservation areas, one for the village and a broader one for its landscape, and individual listings add a further layer. Check whether your home is listed in its own right, then pin down what the job involves. The Housing Code continues to permit certain detached outbuildings and pools in conservation areas, and some alterations may fit the Housing Alterations Code. Listed homes face tighter limits. Anything that falls outside those codes becomes a development application (DA) for council to assess.
Can my Berrima cottage get a bedroom in the roof space?
Possibly. Berrima’s village rules generally keep homes to a single storey under a pitched roof, but they allow attic rooms that fit within the roof. Adding a whole extra floor is a much harder proposal. Start with measured sections of the existing roof to see whether there is enough headroom for a bedroom, stairs and windows. If the room only works by raising or reshaping the roof, expect tougher heritage questions, as the new form must still suit the village setting. New buildings are also limited to 3.6 metres from natural ground to the eaves.
May I add an attached garage at the front of my Berrima house?
Usually that clashes with the village rules. Berrima’s design controls prefer smaller detached outbuildings set behind the house, not kit garages attached to the front, because the street face of these cottages is a big part of the village character. First confirm your lot is covered by those village rules. Then sketch a rear garage or carport, checking driveway access along the side. For any new building, views from public places showing the roof and setting help council judge the fit. A rear layout is usually easier to support.
Building in this suburb?
Send us the address first.
We check the local maps for your lot, confirm the approval path and quote in writing.