Planning Permission in a conservation area

barrymarr

Hi, I'm hoping to get some guidance on some work I want to do. I live in a conservation area that has an article 4 associated with it which apparently means that there is a high level of scrutiny on making any changes to your property.

The door to my garden is in my bathroom which is not only impractical but also means that room is contantly cold as the door is old and single glazed. I therefore want to take a sash window out of my kitchen and replace it with a new external door and replace the bathroom door with a window. There seems to have been extensions and changes to windows made by other properties so I'm hoping I'll get permission, but the level of detail needed for the planners has meant having to ask architects for quotes even though it's a fairly simple piece of building work. This look like its going to add about £1,000 or more to the work before it even starts.

Are architects too qualified for this and how much is a reasonable cost?

Thanks