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Lawful Development Certificate granted for flat in Wandsworth

WEA Planning has been successful in confirming that the creation of a 3-bed flat initially approved as a 1-bedroom flat on Gilbey Road, Tooting is now immune from enforcement and therefore a lawful conversion. WEA Planning worked with the client to gather evidence to demonstrate to Wandsworth Council that the conversion (in breach of a planning permission since 1989) occurred over 10 years ago. As dictated by the Town and Country Planning Act, this flat is now established and no enforcement...

Mansard roof extension won on appeal in Hammersmith and Fulham

WEA Planning has successfully won an appeal against LB Hammersmith and Fulham to permit two versions of a mansard roof extension to the roof of a townhouse on Ongar Road Fulham! The decision follows two refusals from the Council and a refusal to engage with the applicant, architect and WEA Planning.  The applicant contacted WEA Planning after a difficult pre-application meeting with London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham about their project to extend their flat through the construction...

Thomas Tinel joins WEA

Thomas joins the WEA team in our Hoxton office.  Thomas completed an Meng in Engineering and Planning in Lyon, France in 2015. He developed a strong interest for housing issue and for his master’s thesis, he worked on fuel poverty, developing tools to identify and measure fuel poverty at a local level in France. Having gained experience in planning policies in Cork City Council, being involved in the city’s town centre action plan, Thomas decided to move to the UK to develop a career in...

Appeal Success London Borough of Camden

WEA Planning has been successful in obtaining planning permission at appeal for the retention of uPVC windows to the front elevation at loft level to a large terraced house in the Mansfield Conservation Area, London Borough of Camden. The new uPVC windows were installed in the loft to replace the old 1970s dormer windows, improving thermal insulation of the flat.  After receipt of an LB Camden enforcement officer requirement to remove the uPVC windows, the applicant contacted WEA Plann...

Permitted Development Rights Update.

Following our recent post about future changes to Permitted Development, amendments to the General Permitted Development Order 2015 was published a few days ago. The changes below will all come into force on the 25th May 2019. The amendments are set out in The Town and Country Planning (Permitted Development, Advertisement and Compensation Amendments) (England) Regulations 2019. They do not include the right to allow upward extensions....

November London Borough Planning Policy Update

Westminster’s development plan includes the Westminster’s City Plan adopted on 9th November 2016 and policies of the Unitary Development Plan saved on 24th January 2010 by the Secretary of State. Although is currently being reviewed, the Council asks for full weight at Westminster’s City Plan when determining planning applications. The Council advises that very limited weight should be given to the emerging policies at an early stage of the plan-making process. Regarding the UDP, the saved...

Harrow Green Belt success

WEA Planning has been successful in obtaining planning permission for the erection of a two storey rear extension and rear dormer to a large detached house in the Pinner Hill Estate Conservation Area, London Borough of Harrow. The proposal also included extension and floor to ceiling height increase at lower ground/basement floor level to facilitate the conversion of the cellar to habitable space.  After a very negative pre-application advice, the applicant contacted WEA Planning to review ...

Budget and Planning Reform: Supporting the high street and increasing the delivery of the new homes

The Planning reform consultation proposes crucial changes to the planning system and permitted development rights – promoting residential use through conversions and extensions – and to use class orders – proposing the creation of a new Class A to include shops, financial and professional services, restaurants and cafes. Namely:...

Budget and Oliver Letwin’s independent review of build out: final report

In his report, former Conservative Cabinet member, Sir Oliver Letwin recommends local planning authorities should have the power to designate specific areas – in places with high housing demand – within their local plans as land which can be developed only as single large sites. Councils should also have the power to compulsorily purchase (CPO) this land at prices that reflect the value of those sites once they have planning permission. Letwin, promoting mixture in the type and size of ...

Budget 2018 - Key Planning Announcements

The last Budget before Brexit was delivered by Chancellor Philip Hammond on the 29th October 2018 and included proposals for several alterations to the planning system. The Chancellor also published Sir Oliver Letwin’s Independent review of build out: final reportwhich included proposals on how to close the significant gap between housing completions and the amount of land allocated or permissioned. Alongside the Autumn Budget, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Gove...

Upward Extensions and the new National Planning Policy Framework

As housing demand is constantly increasing in London, more and more people are interested in extending their properties. If you are a homeowner or a developer who wants more space or new flats to rent or sell you should be aware that apart from rear, side and roof extensions the new planning reforms are designed to make it easier for you to grown vertically your property.  Secretary of State Sajid Javid states: “The answer to building new homes isn’t always an empty plot or developing o...

Planning for Housing 2018 How to get more homes allocated, permitted and delivered

The Planning for Housing conference was organised for its fifth year by the Ministry of Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG). The annual national gathering for key players within the public and private sector took place on 9th and 10th October to discuss and explore solutions to the complex issues affecting the housing sector. The two-day conference including thought-leading debates, practitioner-led workshops and multi-regional case studies focused on ways to get more h...

Planning Appeal timescales

Further to WEA Planning’s previous article, ‘Appeal Delays’, the latest statistics from the Planning Inspectorate with regards to the time it is taking to determine different types of planning appeals was published on 9thOctober 2018 with significant changes compared to the previous figures of October 2017, February 2018 and March 2018.  A slight improvement was noticed for householder, advertisement consent and other minor appeals, with the waiting for determination time decreasing f...

Grand Designs magazine showcases the benefits WEA Planning brings to ambitious homeowners

For a growing business such as WEA Planning, recognition in front of a wider audience is a precious privilege. So it was a great honour for us to be mentioned three times in the October 2018 edition of Grand Designs magazine. We were particularly proud to be on the suppliers’ list for the project that was featured on the front cover of the edition published in the same month as the prestigious Grand Designs Live show is held at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham....

Larger Rear Extensions: Deadline for completion nearing.

If you are a homeowner or a developer and you wish to extend your house you should be aware that this can take place without the need for planning permission if your proposal is considered permitted development subject to the relevant limits and conditions.  While the length normally accepted for single-storey rear extensions was 4 metres for detached houses and 3 metres for all other houses after the publication of “The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Amendment...

London Road Twickenham Success

Permission granted for condition removal to allow the opening of a fitness studio located at London Road, Twickenham! WEA Planning obtained approval for the removal of the ‘Personal Permission’ condition. WEA managed to save resources and time for the applicant who, following the planning strategy WEA proposed, is now able to move forward and open their business. Another great result for WEA in London Borough of Richmond upon Thames!...

Planning portal planning application fee transaction charges

For existing and future clients, the now privatised Planning portal is introducing a new service. The promotional text states: "As well as smoother, speedier validation for your applications, our new service will provide:A consistent set of payment options across all authorities – including online, telephone, bank transfer and chequeThe option to nominate a third-party to pay securely for the applicationThe ability to pay for your application 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year...

National Planning Policy Framework July 2018

Today (24th July 2018), the Government published the first revision of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) which, following widespread consultation, replaces the original NPPF introduced in 2012.  In regards to on-going applications and appeals, the NPPF took immediate effect, therefore developers and planners need to be aware of the changes, as they will affect their schemes. However, for the purposes of examining local plans, the policies of the revised NPPF will apply to the pl...

Negotiated Pre-Commencement Conditions: Welcome news

Pre-commencement planning conditions and the delays caused to project programmes have always plagued the UK planning system and its ability to encourage development. As stated by Ashfords LLP:On 1 October 2018 the Neighbourhood Planning Act 2017 (Commencement No 5) Regulations 2018 will trigger section 14 of the Neighbourhood Planning Act 2017, specifically subsections 14(1), (3) and (4). This in turn will implement s100ZA (4) to (13) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. The governmen...

Change of Use of unit to Residential in Kensal Rise - Approval Granted

WEA are pleased to advise we have secured planning permission for retrospective Change of Use from live/work unit (Sui Generis) use to residential (Use Class C3) at Kilburn Lane, North Kensington, London Borough of Brent. Originally built as one of the 23 live/work units contained within Regal Building, the unit has been used solely for residential accommodation since construction. WEA Planning managed the application and demonstrated the proposal’s compliance with both local and national poli...

London Borough of Westminster Planning Policy Summary

Westminster’s development plan includes the Westminster’s City Plan adopted on 9th November 2016 and policies of the Unitary Development Plan saved on 24th January 2010 by the Secretary of State. Although is currently being reviewed, the Council asks for full weight at Westminster’s City Plan when determining planning applications. The Council advises that very limited weight should be given to the emerging policies at an early stage of the plan-making process. Regarding the UDP, the saved...

London Borough of Wandsworth Planning Policy Summary

The Wandsworth Local Plan consists of a series of documents with Core Strategy, adopted in March 2016, being the most important, setting the spatial vision for the borough. The Development Management Policies Document (DMPD) and Site Specific Allocations Document (SSAD), both adopted in March 2016 support the Core Strategy objectives.  Wandsworth is now reviewing the policies in the Local Plan that relate to employment land which are expected to de adopted in winter 2018. The Council will a...

London Borough of Sutton Planning Policy Summary

On 26th February 2018 the London Borough Of Sutton adopted the Local Plan as a development plan document (DPD) replacing the Core Strategy (2009) and the Site Development Policies DPD (2012). The new Sutton Local Plan set out planning strategy and policies for the borough’s development until 2031.  The Council publishes also Supplementary Planning Documents (SPDs) periodically to provide further guidance for the Local Plan policies. As most of the SPDs are dated before 2008, with Planning...

London Borough of Merton Planning Policy Summary

The existing Local Plan for Merton has currently superseded the Unitary Development Plan 2003 and contains the Core Planning Strategy adopted in 2011. The Local Plan 2020 is now being produced by the Council and is expected to be submitted this summer and adopted in spring 2019.  Merton provides Supplementary Planning Documents (SPD) to provide further guidance on Local Plan policies with most of them being dated prior to 2007. The most recent Merton’s SPDs are Basement and subterranean p...

Royal Borough of Kingston-upon-Thames Planning Policy Summary

Since 2012 there has been substantial changes to the current Development Plan for the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames with Core Strategy 2012 being the main development plan document of it.  The Core Strategy 2012 will be replaced by the new Kingston Local Plan 2019-2041 that has already begun to be produced by the Council and is expected to be adopted later this year. ...