Bungaroosh walls: what to know before removing a wall in Brighton

3 November 2026 · Blog

New steel beams supporting an open-plan kitchen at Thornhill Close, Hove.

If you live in an older house in Brighton or Hove and you’re planning an open-plan kitchen, there’s a good chance your walls contain bungaroosh. It’s one of the city’s oldest building materials, and it’s the main reason a wall removal here can be less straightforward than the same job elsewhere.

What is bungaroosh?
Bungaroosh is a mix of whatever builders had to hand in Georgian and Regency Brighton: flints, broken brick, pebbles and rubble, set in lime mortar and cast between timber shuttering, often with brick corners and window surrounds for strength. It was cheap, quick and good enough for the time, and thousands of houses from the late 1700s and early 1800s were built with it.

Why it matters when you remove a wall
• It can be weak where it matters. A new steel beam puts concentrated loads onto the walls at each end. Bungaroosh can crumble under that load, especially where the lime has broken down.
• It hates water. Leaking gutters, failed render or the wrong kind of modern mortar or plaster can wash out the lime and leave the core loose.
• It hides surprises. Old timber lintels, past alterations and voids are common, and you often can’t see them until the plaster comes off.

How we design for it
• We inspect the walls at the site visit and look for signs of bungaroosh, past movement and damp.
• We design the bearings for the new beam to spread the load, usually with concrete padstones, and sometimes with new brick or block piers or steel posts down to a proper foundation.
• Where the wall can’t be confirmed until it’s exposed, we tell your builder exactly what to open up and check before the beam goes in.
• We specify temporary propping so the floors above are safely supported while the wall comes out.

Signs your house may have bungaroosh
• It was built before about 1850, especially in central Brighton, Kemp Town or Hove’s older streets
• The walls are thick and rendered, often with brick corners or window surrounds
• Plaster sounds hollow or falls away to reveal flints, pebbles and rubble
• There’s damp, bulging or crumbling around old leaks

Common questions

Can a bungaroosh wall be removed?
Usually, yes, with the right support. The key is designing the ends of the beam for what the walls can actually carry.

Do I need Building Control approval?
Yes. Removing a load-bearing wall is structural work, so you need Building Control approval and structural calculations.

Can I repair bungaroosh with cement?
It’s best avoided. Hard cement mortars and renders trap moisture, which can make the problem worse. Lime-based repairs are usually more suitable.

What if my house is in a conservation area or listed?
Internal structural changes to a listed building need listed building consent. In a conservation area, internal works usually don’t need planning permission, but external changes may.

Our work in Brighton & Hove
We’ve designed wall removals across the city, including at Tivoli Road and Hendon Street in Brighton, and Nevill Avenue and Thornhill Close in Hove.

Structural engineers in Brighton & Hove →
Is my wall load-bearing? →
Wall removal calculations →
Book a visit or call 020 3835 2633