Steel BeamInstallers
Grey steel goalpost frame installed where a rear wall has been removed

Steel goalpost frames · Solihull

Steel goalpost frames in Solihull

Steel goalpost frames for homes in B90, B91, B92, designed by a structural engineer.

  • Itemised written quote
  • Beam sized by a structural engineer
  • Covering Solihull and nearby

Free survey in Solihull

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  • Free survey visit
  • Engineer's calculations arranged
  • Building control handled
  • Fixed written price once scope is agreed
  • England, Wales, mainland Scotland & NI

What steel goalpost frames involve in Solihull

Our steel goalpost frames service in Solihull covers everything from the first visit to the completion paperwork. We also work in nearby Birmingham, roughly 6.8 miles away. Postcode districts we cover here include B90, B91, B92 and B93.

When a rear wall is opened almost corner to corner, or the brickwork either side is too thin, cracked or broken up by openings to take a concentrated load, a beam on padstones is not enough. A goalpost frame brings its own supports: two columns carry the beam's ends straight down to new foundations, so the walls around the opening are not relied on.

Worth knowing before you start

  • Price depends on the opening width, the loads the beam carries, the number of bolted connections, the depth of the pads and how easily the steel can be carried in. Any redesign after the ground is opened is priced before it goes ahead.
  • A goalpost frame is structural work, so building regulations approval is needed in England and Wales, a building warrant before work in Scotland, and a building control application in Northern Ireland. The inspector typically wants to see the pad excavations as well as the finished steel.
  • Keep the engineer's calculations, the frame drawings and the building control completion certificate together. They show a future buyer's surveyor how the opening is supported and save questions about the columns when the house is sold.
  • Columns are commonly universal columns or square hollow sections, welded to steel base plates at the foot and cap plates at the head. Holding-down bolts fix the base plates to the pad, and grout fills the gap beneath once the frame is level.
  • A goalpost frame differs from a simple beam because the beam does not rely on the walls at its ends. The two columns and the beam are connected so the whole frame carries the load down into foundations of its own.

Four stages, one team

  1. Look and measure

    We check the wall, the span you want and what the wall is carrying, and photograph anything the engineer needs to see.

  2. Design and price

    Calculations come back from the engineer and we confirm your fixed written price, line by line.

  3. Building control

    We submit a building notice or full plans application to Solihull Council, so approval is in place before the wall is touched.

  4. Fit, inspect, finish

    The work is propped and the steel installed and packed tight. After inspection the opening is boxed, plastered and left clean.

How much should I budget in Solihull?

As a guide, budget £2,000–£6,000 including VAT for steel goalpost frame in Solihull, based on published UK cost guides adjusted for prices in the West Midlands (no adjustment).

JobTypical guide rangeWhat it usually covers
Steel goalpost frame£2,000–£6,000Two posts and a beam bolted as a frame, pad foundations, base plates and fitting
RSJ supply and fit (single beam)£800–£2,500 per beamBeam supplied, delivered, lifted and packed on padstones, with propping (calculations and approval priced separately)
Steel column or post£500–£1,500 per columnColumn supplied and fitted with base and cap plates on a pad foundation
Opening into a rear extension£2,500–£7,000Original rear wall removed with a beam or goalpost, approvals and propping, coordinated with the extension build

Figures include our approximate regional adjustment for prices in the West Midlands (no adjustment) and are rounded. How these figures are worked out.

Building rules for Solihull

For Solihull, building control is provided by Solihull Council, or by a registered building control approver if preferred. We send them the engineer's calculations with a building notice or full plans application and book the inspections. Work done without approval can cause problems at sale and is far dearer to put right later.

If the beam bears into a wall you share with a neighbour, the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 applies, and a party structure notice must be served at least two months before that work starts. We arrange this through a party wall surveyor.

Building rules in England

Steel goalpost frames near Solihull

Questions about steel goalpost frames in Solihull

Who approves steel goalpost frames in Solihull?

Structural work in Solihull needs a building notice or full plans application to Solihull Council or a registered building control approver. We prepare and submit it with the structural engineer's calculations and arrange the inspections, so the completion paperwork follows the job.

Do you cover Solihull for steel goalpost frames?

Yes. We carry out steel goalpost frames in Solihull and the B90, B91, B92 and B93 postcode districts. Book a free survey visit and we will check the wall, arrange the engineer's calculations and send an itemised written quote.

What is the difference between a goalpost and a portal frame?

A domestic goalpost is a simple version of a portal frame. Both use columns and a beam joined together, but a full portal frame has rigid joints designed to resist sideways loads on its own, as used in steel-framed industrial buildings. In a house, the engineer decides how rigid the goalpost joints need to be for that opening.

Are goalpost frames welded or bolted?

Most domestic goalposts are bolted, with plates welded to the beam and columns in the fabrication shop and bolted together on site. That lets each piece be carried into the house separately. The engineer specifies the connection details, including whether the joints need to resist sway, and the fabricator makes the frame to suit.

What is a goalpost frame in an extension?

A goalpost frame is a steel beam sitting on two steel columns, bolted together so it stands as one unit. In an extension it is usually placed where the old rear wall was, holding up the house above while leaving a wide, clear opening. The columns rest on concrete pads, so the frame does not depend on the surrounding brickwork.

What happens at the survey visit in Solihull?

We look at the wall, the floor and ceiling either side and what sits above, measure the opening you want, and note cables, pipes and access for the steel. It usually takes under an hour and there is no charge.

Planning to take a wall out?

Book a free survey visit. You get an itemised written quote covering calculations, building control, steel and making good.