Electrical in St James's
SW1Y · Central London · Rewires, consumer units, lighting design and certification
Indicative local rate
£150 / m²
Area factor
Central London ×1.18
Typical programme
1–6 weeks
Postcode
SW1Y
Electrical in St James's
Electrical work is the least visible and most regulated part of a refurbishment. In older London homes we routinely find rubber or fabric-insulated cabling, no earth on lighting circuits, overloaded radial circuits and consumer units that predate RCD protection entirely.
St James's is one of the most tightly protected parts of central London: eighteenth and nineteenth-century townhouses, club buildings, mansion flats and commercial chambers, largely listed and entirely within a conservation area. Residential work here is concentrated in apartments and upper-floor conversions, alongside a steady amount of commercial refurbishment in offices and members' premises.
That context shapes how we approach electrical here. Servicing is the defining constraint. Loading bays are booked, streets are narrow and busy for most of the day, waste removal happens in scheduled collections, and noise-generating work is limited to agreed hours. Programmes are built around those windows from day one, and out-of-hours working is arranged in advance where a client's neighbours or building management require it. We survey the property, confirm the consents that apply to SW1Y and issue a fixed price against a written scope, so the figure you sign is the figure you pay unless you change the brief.
Our indicative rate for electrical in Central London is around £150 per m², reflecting a ×1.18 area factor against our London baseline. Use the instant quotation tool for a figure tailored to your size, specification and start date.
Included in St James's
- Condition report on existing installation
- Circuit design, load assessment and consumer unit specification
- Full or partial rewire with new earthing and bonding
- Socket, switch and lighting positions planned room by room
- Lighting design: task, ambient, accent and external
- Kitchen and bathroom circuits to current zoning rules
- Smoke, heat and CO detection, mains-linked and interlinked
- EV charger installation and supply upgrade coordination
How the job runs
Inspection
Existing installation assessed and reported, with a clear statement of what must be replaced and what is serviceable.
Design
Circuits, loads and every accessory position agreed on a plan before work starts.
First fix
Cables run, back boxes set, chases cut and made good before plastering.
Second fix
Accessories, light fittings, consumer unit and controls installed.
Test and certify
Full inspection and testing, certification issued and building control notification made.
Handover
Circuit schedule, certificates and instructions for controls and detection systems.
When does a property need a rewire?
Rewiring is not automatic with age. The indicators are rubber, lead or fabric insulated cable, a fuse-wire or early plastic consumer unit, no RCD protection, no earthing to lighting circuits, or an EICR reporting C1 and C2 defects across multiple circuits.
Where the cabling is sound modern PVC and the fault is a dated consumer unit, a board change with supplementary work is often the correct and much cheaper answer. We would rather tell you that than sell a rewire you do not need.
Electrical examples in Central London
Illustrative concept case studies — not records of specific client contracts.
Electrical in St James's: common questions
How much does a rewire cost in London?
Our indicative rate is around £130 per m² of floor area plus base costs, so a 100m² house is broadly in the £14,000 region depending on accessory count and specification.
How long does a rewire take?
1–3 weeks for a typical house at first and second fix, plus plastering and decoration afterwards.
Can I live in the house during a rewire?
It is possible but uncomfortable — power is off in sections and floors and walls are opened. Where clients stay, we phase floor by floor and keep a working circuit available.
Do you install EV chargers?
Yes, including load assessment, supply upgrade coordination with the network operator where needed, and certification.