Viability Works Ltd is a specialist consultancy providing expert advice on affordable housing viability, planning contributions, and development economics. Founded by Matthew Stevens, a qualified architect with extensive experience in planning, design, and development, we offer a practical and design-minded approach to site viability.

We help developers, landowners, and planning professionals reduce obligations, unlock stalled sites, and secure permissions faster — all through robust, RICS-aligned viability assessments.

Our Mission

To help small and medium-sized developers build more homes by making the planning system fairer, faster, and more financially viable.

We believe that good design and smart economics should work hand in hand — and that viability isn’t just about spreadsheets, but about unlocking real opportunities.

Why Choose Us?

• Architect-Led Insight
  We understand how design, layout, and planning policy interact — and how to build viable schemes that still meet design quality.

• Developer-Minded Thinking
  Our reports are written to support applications, manage risk, and make strong, defensible cases to local planning authorities.

• Policy-Literate
  We interpret national and local policy to create solutions that work — including Small Site Exemptions and NPPF Paragraph 58 reviews.

• Responsive & Personable
  We're a small team, so you speak directly with the expert writing your report. No call centres. No copy-paste templates.

Based in Dorset. Working Across England.

While we're based in Christchurch, Dorset, we advise on planning applications across the South Coast, South West, and further afield — from Devon to Kent, and from small rural schemes to urban infill sites.

About the Founder – Matthew Stevens

Matthew is a qualified Architect (ARB) with over 15 years of experience across residential design, planning policy, and development consultancy. He has led projects ranging from bespoke homes to large-scale retirement communities.

Matthew launched Viability Works to bring architectural thinking into viability assessments — making the process more transparent, more realistic, and more aligned with the way developers and planners actually work.