Extending opening at back of house

[eod]

There are currently some fairly old, smallish french doors at the back of my house and I am thinking of extending the opening & fitting new, wider more standard size doors.

This would involve altering the brickwork. I want to find out what this would involve before deciding who to hire / what i can do myself.

There are 'soldiers' (bricks postioned vertically) over the doors at the moment (as there are over our windows). I presume these act as a sort of lintel?

Would it be possible to hold the brickwork above the door with acros, insert a bigger lintel & then chop out the brickwork as necessary or is this oversimplifying things.

Many thanks,,,,

[stoneyboy]

eod,
"I presume these act as a sort of lintel?" No they don't.
You will need to fit a new lintol to support the wall which may be a cavity wall. Your description is simplifying things but broadly correct.
end

[eod]

many thanks Stoneyboy,

out of interest, if the soldiers (vertical bricks) aren't for support are they purely decorative?

[stoneyboy]

eod,
"are they purely decorative" YES unless they are in an arch form then they would be for support.
end

[TheDoctor4]

Let DIY Doctor help you to find quotes from vetted and trusted tradesman local to your area. Visit our Find a Tradesman page: https://www.diydoctor.org.uk/find_tradesmen/