Harrow planning: a new Local Plan, a new HMO rule and 82.7% of householder cases approved

Harrow granted 82.7% of the householder applications it decided in the 2025-26 financial year, 739 of 894, with 155 refused. That is below the London rate of 85.6% across 24,758 decisions and the England rate of 90.3%. The council decided 94.4% of its standard cases within eight weeks, so decisions are quick even where approval is less certain than in the strongest boroughs.

Yes for a new HMO of 3 to 6 people since 12 June 2026. Harrow's cabinet approved a Article 4 direction on 11 June 2026. The council's news item says planning permission is now required for HMOs from 12 June, including small ones for 3 to 6 people that were previously permitted development. The licensing page lists the cases that apply. A licence is a separate decision, and neither replaces the other.

Harrow's licensing page describes a mandatory licence where a property is occupied by 5 or more people forming 2 or more households. It also operates an additional licensing scheme for certain HMOs outside mandatory licensing, where 3 or more people form 2 or more households. The page does not specify the areas of the additional scheme, so check it with the council for your address.

The council's pages mark five areas in the Stanmore and Edgware group: Little Common, Stanmore Hill, Old Church Lane, Kerry Avenue and Canons Park Estate. They mark five on Harrow on the Hill, including Harrow on the Hill Village and Mount Park Estate. They also mark Pinner High Street and four other Pinner areas. Brookshill Drive and Grimsdyke Estate has a direction for some buildings. Check the page for your area.

It is the London Borough of Harrow Local Plan 2021 to 2041, adopted on 24 March 2026. The council's adoption statement says it now carries full weight in the consideration of planning applications. It replaces the Core Strategy (2012), the Development Management Policies (2013), the Harrow and Wealdstone Area Action Plan (2013) and the Site Allocations (2013).

Harrow's prior approval page says smaller extensions of up to 3m for semi-detached houses, or 4m for detached houses, do not need prior approval. A larger single storey extension goes through the prior approval process. The limit is 6m for a terraced or semi-detached house and 8m for a detached one. The process involves consulting immediate neighbours and can last 42 days.

Harrow refused 108 of 438 large home extension prior approvals in 2025-26, 24.7%. It decided more than any London borough except Redbridge. The refusal share is well below Kingston upon Thames at 45.5% and Greenwich at 48.1%, but higher than Hillingdon at 8.6%. The route turns on neighbour amenity, so an objection from an adjoining owner means the council assesses neighbour amenity and may refuse.

Close to the London average. The Planning Inspectorate allowed 39.0% of householder appeals against Harrow over the five years to 30 June 2026, 106 of 272, against 39.9% in London and 34.4% in England. An appeal takes months and is judged on the same policies, so a revised application is often quicker than contesting a refusal.

Yes. The council's pages list a Residential Design Guide SPD (2010), which it describes as non-statutory, without development plan status, and considered in planning applications. It covers extensions to existing dwellings as well as new homes and conversions. Because the borough adopted a new Local Plan in March 2026, confirm with the council that the guide is still the reference for your project.

The whole borough, including Harrow on the Hill, Pinner, Stanmore, Edgware, Wealdstone, Rayners Lane, Kenton and Hatch End. Harrow Council decides every application against the same Local Plan, so the process is the same across postcodes. What changes is the constraint map: conservation areas and Article 4 directions sit in specific places, which is why we check the address first.