
Home Improvement Specialist
Sarah Mitchell
Sarah covers kitchens, bathrooms, extensions, loft conversions, renovations, and general building work for Less.co.uk. If it involves knocking down a wall or fitting a new worktop, it probably lands on her desk.
Sarah spent eight years working in the UK construction industry before joining Less. She started on site with a regional housebuilder, moved into project management for residential refurbishments across the South West, and spent the last few years of that stretch working directly with contractors and building companies on everything from small bathroom refits to full house renovations. She's seen first-hand how costs spiral when homeowners don't have access to reliable pricing information, and how much unnecessary stress that causes.
She knows Building Regulations inside out — Part L, Part P, structural requirements, completion certificates — and has navigated more planning permission applications than she can count, from straightforward permitted development to tricky conservation area submissions. That technical knowledge comes across in her writing, where she takes projects that most people find intimidating and breaks them down into plain English that actually helps you make a decision.
Sarah lives in Bristol with her family. She's renovated two Victorian terraces herself, so she knows the difference between what a project is supposed to cost and what it ends up costing when you pull up the floorboards and find rotten joists. The first time round, she went in blind. The second time, she budgeted for the unexpected — and still went over. That hands-on experience shapes everything she writes for the site.
Areas of expertise
- Kitchens — layouts, units, worktops, and full refit costs
- Bathrooms — suites, tiling, wet rooms, and plumbing
- Extensions — single-storey, double-storey, and wraparound
- Loft conversions — dormer, hip-to-gable, Velux, and mansard
- Renovations — period properties, structural alterations, and full refurbishments
- Working with UK contractors — quoting processes, project management, and realistic timelines
- Building Regulations — Part L, Part P, structural sign-off, and completion certificates
- Planning permission — permitted development, householder applications, and conservation areas