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Project Planning Checklists

Planning Checklists & Decision Guides

A library of educational, owner-side preparation checklists for construction, renovation, interior, materials and outdoor projects. Each one gathers the decisions worth recording, the documents worth collecting, and the questions worth asking a qualified professional before work begins.

These are planning resources, not professional checklists. Nothing here approves a design, determines whether a permit is required, confirms that work meets local building rules, prices anything, or judges whether a professional or supplier is suitable. Requirements vary by project and location and are confirmed locally.

690 checklists across 28 categories in 6 areas

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Where to begin

Jump to the area you are planning for, or browse further down by the stage your project has reached.

Construction & Renovation

Preparing a build, an extension, a conversion or a renovation — scope, existing conditions, structure, envelope and site logistics.

6 categories · 176 checklists

Interior, Rooms & Materials

Room-by-room preparation and the material, finish, lighting and storage decisions that are cheap to change now and expensive later.

9 categories · 230 checklists

Landscape & Outdoor Living

Gardens, outdoor rooms, surfaces, planting and site water — what to observe outdoors and what belongs with a landscape professional.

5 categories · 122 checklists

Professionals & Project Management

Preparing for conversations with professionals, and keeping a project legible once it is running.

3 categories · 44 checklists

Sports & Facility Planning

Court, community and school facility projects, and the operational questions a venue faces before it opens.

3 categories · 82 checklists

Handover & Maintenance

The end of a project and everything after it — documents to request, details to record, and how choices age.

2 categories · 36 checklists

How this library fits

From inspiration to a useful conversation

The Ideas Library explores design direction. These checklists turn a direction into decisions, documents and questions. The guide sections explain the background behind them.

1 · Inspiration

Explore directions in the Ideas Library and note what appeals.

2 · Preparation

Work through the relevant checklists and record your decisions.

3 · Conversation

Take the questions to qualified professionals and confirm locally.

Browse by area

Construction & Renovation

Preparing a build, an extension, a conversion or a renovation — scope, existing conditions, structure, envelope and site logistics.

176 checklists in this area

36 checklistsConstruction Planning →Owner-side preparation checklists for new-build and major construction projects — scope, information to gather and the questions to bring to qualified professionals.42 checklistsRenovation Planning →Preparation checklists for renovation projects — scope, sequencing conversations, existing conditions to document and decisions to agree before work starts.30 checklistsAdditions & Conversions →Preparation checklists for extensions, conversions and outbuilding projects — what the new space has to do, and the questions that belong with professionals.22 checklistsStructural Discussion →How to prepare a conversation with a structural engineer or surveyor — what to observe and record, and what only a qualified professional can establish.24 checklistsEnvelope & Openings →Preparation checklists for walls, roofs, insulation, windows and doors — describing the building you have and the questions to raise about performance.22 checklistsAccess & Logistics →Planning the practical side of having work happen at a property — access, deliveries, waste, neighbours, protection and the record made before work starts.

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Interior, Rooms & Materials

Room-by-room preparation and the material, finish, lighting and storage decisions that are cheap to change now and expensive later.

230 checklists in this area

33 checklistsKitchen Planning →Kitchen preparation checklists — layout decisions to weigh, storage and appliance questions to discuss, and the information to gather before meeting a designer or contractor.33 checklistsBathroom Planning →Bathroom preparation checklists — fixture and layout decisions to discuss, moisture and ventilation questions to raise, and information to gather before professional review.30 checklistsInterior Design Prep →Preparation checklists for interior design conversations — brief, priorities, room requirements and the decisions worth recording before meeting a designer.24 checklistsLiving & Bedrooms →Preparation checklists for living rooms, dining areas and bedrooms — how the rooms are really used, seating and storage decisions, and comfort questions to raise.20 checklistsHome Office & Small Spaces →Preparation checklists for working at home and getting more from compact spaces — what has to coexist, reach and circulation, and questions worth asking.18 checklistsStorage & Organisation →Storage preparation checklists — auditing what actually needs storing, where it is used, and the questions to bring to a joiner or designer.16 checklistsLighting Discussion →Preparation checklists for lighting conversations — what each room is used for at different times, where controls belong, and what to ask a designer or electrician.30 checklistsMaterials & Finishes →Decision checklists for materials and finishes — samples to compare, conditions to describe, maintenance expectations to confirm and questions for suppliers and installers.26 checklistsFlooring & Surfaces →Flooring and surface preparation checklists — subfloor questions to raise, transitions and thresholds to decide, and information to gather before specification.

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Landscape & Outdoor Living

Gardens, outdoor rooms, surfaces, planting and site water — what to observe outdoors and what belongs with a landscape professional.

122 checklists in this area

30 checklistsLandscape Planning →Landscape project preparation checklists — site information to gather, use and access decisions to record, and questions for landscape professionals.30 checklistsGarden & Backyard →Garden and backyard preparation checklists — zones and planting questions to discuss, upkeep expectations to agree and information to gather before planting or building.24 checklistsOutdoor Living & Surfaces →Preparation checklists for patios, decks, paths and driveways — how the space is used across the year, and the surface questions worth asking early.20 checklistsPlanting & Maintenance →Planting brief and aftercare checklists — describing conditions honestly, agreeing who maintains what, and the questions for a designer, nursery or arborist.18 checklistsDrainage & Site →Observation and record-keeping checklists for water on site — what to watch, what to photograph, and the questions that belong with a drainage professional.

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Professionals & Project Management

Preparing for conversations with professionals, and keeping a project legible once it is running.

44 checklists in this area

12 checklistsHiring Professionals →Preparation checklists for conversations with professionals — what to prepare before a first meeting, what to ask, and what to record afterwards.10 checklistsProject Coordination →Owner-side coordination checklists — decision logs, communication routines, document organisation and the questions that keep a project legible.22 checklistsDocumentation & Changes →Owner-side checklists for drawings, specifications, instructions, variations and records — keeping a project legible when something changes.

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Sports & Facility Planning

Court, community and school facility projects, and the operational questions a venue faces before it opens.

82 checklists in this area

30 checklistsSports Court Planning →Owner-side preparation checklists for court projects — site and use description, and the surface, drainage, lighting and consent questions to raise.26 checklistsCommunity & School →Preparation checklists for shared, school and community sports and play facilities — who uses them, consultation, access, supervision and upkeep.26 checklistsOperations Readiness →Preparation checklists for running a facility day to day — information to assemble, routines to agree and records to set up before opening.

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Handover & Maintenance

The end of a project and everything after it — documents to request, details to record, and how choices age.

36 checklists in this area

20 checklistsHandover & Maintenance →Handover preparation checklists — documents to request, information to record, and maintenance questions to ask before a project is considered finished.16 checklistsDurability & Maintenance →Decision checklists for how choices age — what the finish has to survive, who looks after it, and the upkeep questions to confirm with suppliers and installers.

Browse by project stage

Where has your project got to?

Each checklist is placed at the earliest point in a project where it becomes useful. A sample from each stage is shown; the full set sits inside the categories above.

A taste of the library

Featured checklists

Two checklists from each of the six areas, to show the kind of preparation inside.

New Home Project Preparation →Owner-side preparation for building a new home: what to observe on the plot, what the household should agree first, and what belongs with qualified professionals.Whole-Home Renovation Prep →A preparation checklist for owners planning work across most of a home at once, covering scope, existing conditions to record and questions to take to professionals.Kitchen Layout Decisions →A preparation checklist for recording how your kitchen room is really shaped and used, so layout conversations start from observed facts rather than guesswork.Bathroom Layout Decisions →A preparation checklist for owners weighing bathroom layout options: recording the room as it stands, and separating fixture positions you can change from those you cannot.Landscape Brief Preparation →Preparation prompts for owners writing down what an outdoor space has to do, what should stay, how much upkeep is realistic, and which questions belong with a professional.Small Garden Planning →Preparation prompts for owners of a small garden, covering boundaries, light, access and the trade-offs a tight plot forces between seating, planting and storage.Architect First Meeting →Preparation prompts for a first meeting with an architect: which property records to dig out, how to state the brief in your own words, and what to note afterwards.Project Decision Log →Setting up an owner-side decision log before work starts, so that the choices made during a live project are recorded, attributed and easy to find again later.Sports Court Project Prep →Preparation prompts for an owner or club considering a court: describing the ground, recording who would play and when, and framing surface and consent topics as questions.Community Sports Area Planning →Preparation for a group planning a shared sports area: who already uses the ground, who holds a key, who cuts the grass, and which questions belong with others.Handover Document Request →A preparation checklist for owners assembling the list of drawings, records and contact details worth requesting before a project team disperses.Surface Wear Expectations →Turns the marks on the surfaces you already live with into a written record of the wear you expect, tolerate and refuse, before any new finish is settled.

Elsewhere on Build Design Hub

Ideas and guides

Inspiration to explore first, and explanatory guidance to read alongside.

Ideas Library →Design inspiration and direction.Renovation guides →Explanatory renovation planning.Construction guides →Explanatory construction planning.Interior Design guides →Rooms, layouts and finishes.Landscape Design guides →Gardens and outdoor spaces.Professionals →How professional roles differ.