Lambeth planning: 81.3% of householder cases approved, 62 conservation areas and a Design Guide with firm numbers
Lambeth planning decisions covered 610 householder applications in 2025-26, and the council granted 496 of them. That is an approval rate of 81.3%, against 85.6% across London. The Lambeth Design Guide SPD, adopted on 8 August 2023, gives measurable tests, applied as general rules: 1m of side space kept above ground floor level, and no less than 70% of a rear garden kept free of basement.
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How does Lambeth Council decide householder applications?
Lambeth decides a below-median caseload, 23rd of the 33 London boroughs by householder decisions, and approves below the London average, and a large share of its cases run on agreed timescales rather than the standard eight weeks.
Measure
Lambeth
London
England
Householder applications decided, 2025-26
610
24,758
151,867
Householder approval rate
81.3%
85.6%
90.3%
Decided within 8 weeks (standard cases)
95.0%
—
—
Large extension prior approvals decided
50
—
—
Householder appeals allowed, five years
36.6%
39.9%
34.4%
Approval and speed: MHCLG district planning application statistics (PS1/PS2), financial year 2025-26. The eight-week figure is 377 of 397 decisions excluding planning performance agreements, extensions of time and EIAs. Appeals: Planning Inspectorate casework, five years to 30 June 2026, 49 of 134 determined householder appeals allowed. Derived in scripts/aggregate/.
Why does a 95% eight-week figure hide so many longer cases in Lambeth?
Lambeth refused 114 of its 610 householder applications. Its approval rate of 81.3% ranks 26th of the 32 boroughs with a published figure, tied with one other borough. On speed, 377 of 397 standard decisions came within eight weeks, 95.0%, 15th of 32 and also tied with one other borough.
That figure leaves out decisions made under a planning performance agreement or an agreed extension of time. In Lambeth that group is large: 213 of the 610 decisions, about 35%, with 198 of them made within the agreed time. So more than a third of householder cases ran on the council's agreed timetable instead of the standard eight weeks. If your case officer proposes more time to negotiate a design, accepting it is a choice, and it moves the decision out of the eight-week count.
On larger rear extensions the council decided 50 prior approvals and refused 18, 36.0%. That is the 5th highest share among 24 boroughs with a published rate, so a 6m rear extension is not a formality here. Appeals sit near the middle: the Planning Inspectorate allowed 49 of 134 householder appeals over five years, 36.6%, 19th of 32 and 2.2 points above the national rate.
What does the Lambeth Design Guide SPD change for extensions?
The council's SPD page lists the Lambeth Design Guide SPD as adopted on 8 August 2023, in five parts. Part 4 covers building alterations, extensions and retrofit, and Part 5 covers basements. The SPD says it is a material consideration, and it applies Local Plan 2021 policies such as Q11 on extensions and Q27 on basements. The council's adoption statement says Part 4 supersedes the Building Alterations and Extensions SPD 2015, so read Parts 4 and 5, not the 2015 document, before you finalise a design. They are what an officer will measure a side extension, loft or basement against.
8 Aug 2023 Adopted
1m Side space kept
70% Rear garden kept free of basement
What are the Lambeth Design Guide's tests for extensions, dormers and basements?
Parts 4 and 5 are specific where many borough guides are not. The wording below is close to the SPD's own, and each test is a guide to how officers judge a scheme.
Type
What the SPD says
Why it matters
Side extension (para 4.68, Q11 H)
As a general rule, a minimum retained space of 1m between the extension and the property boundary above ground floor, and much more where side space is important to local character. The Local Plan's own text of Q11 H applies the 1m minimum in suburban locations and says it should generally be retained
A side extension that reaches the boundary above ground floor is likely to conflict with this guidance
Infill (para 4.55, Q11 E)
The SPD says infills should be single storey and mostly glazed so the original return stays visually dominant. The Local Plan's own text of Q11 E is narrower: single storey on heritage assets, and elsewhere not projecting beyond the end wall of the return above ground floor level
The SPD calls single-storey infills potentially acceptable where they are subordinate and do not harm neighbours' amenity (para 4.54)
Wrap-around (para 4.56)
Acceptable in most circumstances, but resisted on heritage assets and buildings in conservation areas because of the horizontal emphasis of full-width glazing
A wrap-around that would pass in one street can fail in a conservation area
Dormers (paras 4.90 to 4.91)
Generally supported at the rear and resisted on front roof pitches where not characteristic; a dormer head at least 2.1m above floor level and a cill about 1m above the attic floor
Where planning permission is needed, siting, set-in and proportions decide the case; box dormers are inappropriate on heritage assets and in conservation areas (para 4.96)
Rear basement (para 5.50, Q27 G)
Basement beyond the footprint of the host building no greater than that footprint, with no less than 70% of the rear garden free of basement and at its original ground level. The Local Plan's own text of Q27 G says a basement should generally retain no less than 70% of the rear garden free of subterranean development, and limits the footprint test to not exceeding the house's footprint to the side or at the front
A garden basement is capped by area, not only by depth
Source: London Borough of Lambeth, Lambeth Design Guide SPD Part 4 (Building Alterations, Extensions and Retrofit) and Part 5 (Basements), adopted 8 August 2023, read from the council PDFs on 13 October 2026. Policy wording was checked against the Lambeth Local Plan 2021; where the SPD's summary differs from the plan, both are given. Figures are guidance for applications and do not alter the permitted development limits.
How many conservation areas does Lambeth have?
The council's conservation area profiles page says there are 62 in Lambeth, covering approximately 30% of the borough, and lists them by name. They include Clapham, Brixton, Stockwell Park, Herne Hill, Kennington, Streatham Common, Vauxhall, West Norwood, Telford Park, Hyde Farm and Larkhall. The national planning data register records 65 for Lambeth. Three of those records do not appear on the council's list: Harold Road, Upper Norwood Triangle and a second Lambeth Palace record. Treat the council's list as the one that decides, and check your address with the conservation team.
The status matters for roof and extension work. A dormer is an enlargement of the roof, and Class B of Part 1 of the General Permitted Development Order does not apply on article 2(3) land, which includes conservation areas. The Design Guide adds that dormers are considered the most appropriate way to add roof accommodation in a conservation area, provided they are subordinate and based on traditional local precedents. Under the national rules the 6m and 8m prior approval route for larger rear extensions is not available on conservation area land either, so the 3m and 4m limits stay, unless an Article 4 direction removes those rights too.
Which Article 4 directions does Lambeth list for houses and flats?
The council's page lists directions removing householder rights in nine conservation areas, a small-HMO direction in two wards, and three directions withdrawing Class MA rights in parts of the borough.
Direction on the council's page
Dates
What it affects
Nine conservation areas: Albert Square, Hyde Farm, Lansdowne Gardens, Leigham Court Estate, Park Hall Road, St Marks, Stockwell Park, Streatham Lodge and Vauxhall (all or parts)
Not stated on the page. The council's Article 4 dataset gives start dates from 1975 to 2010 for eight of the nine areas but has no Vauxhall record; the Vauxhall profile page labels two directions 1975 and 1984, but both links open St Marks direction files
Some permitted development rights for external alterations and other built development
Small HMOs (Class L(b)): Streatham Common and Vale and Streatham St Leonard's wards
Confirmed 24 July 2025, in force 11 August 2025
Change from a house to a small HMO
Commercial to residential (Class MA): three modified directions covering selected parts of the Central Activities Zone, selected industrial and business areas with the West Norwood Creative Business Cluster, and selected town centres
In force 28 October 2022
Change of use from Class E to homes in those areas only
Source: London Borough of Lambeth, Article 4 directions page and the small HMO direction page, read 13 October 2026. The HMO direction was made on 7 August 2024, confirmed on 24 July 2025 and came into force on 11 August 2025. The national register's 12 Lambeth records match the council's own dataset: nine conservation area records (St Marks has two) and the three Class MA directions. Neither includes Vauxhall, which the council's Article 4 page lists, or the 2025 HMO direction. The small HMO direction is not borough-wide.
Do HMO rules in Lambeth need planning permission or a licence?
Planning and licensing are separate. The planning direction above covers only the Streatham Common and Vale and Streatham St Leonard's wards, so a house elsewhere in Lambeth is not caught by it. The council's HMO page says renting an HMO to seven or more people needs planning permission for a change of use. Licensing is wider: the council's page says its borough-wide additional HMO licensing scheme came into force on 9 December 2021 for homes with three or more occupiers not caught by mandatory licensing, and by law a designation lasts no more than five years, so check whether it has been renewed; and its selective licensing scheme took effect in two phases, on 2 September 2024 and 1 September 2025, and excludes Vauxhall and Waterloo and South Bank.
The Lambeth Local Plan 2021 was adopted on 22 September 2021 and replaced the 2015 plan. The council's page gives its period as 2020 to 2035. A replacement is in preparation. Its scoping consultation ran from 1 September to 13 October 2026 and has closed, and the council's timetable, which it says it will update, shows submission on 30 November 2028 and adoption on 30 April 2029. Treat those as targets. Until a new plan is adopted, the 2021 plan, the London Plan and, in their areas, the South Bank and Waterloo and the Kennington, Oval and Vauxhall neighbourhood plans form the development plan.
Check the document you are reading is the adopted version before you quote a policy.
What does Lambeth ask for with a householder application?
The council's householder page, written for its pilot online tool, lists the documents it asks for with a householder application, and a local list for anything extra.
Site plans and elevations
A location plan and a design and access statement, which the online tool can help you create; the council's invalid-applications page lists a design and access statement as required for listed building consent, larger schemes and some conservation area schemes, so check the Local List for your case
A heritage statement or flood risk assessment where the site needs one
Anything else on the council's Local Information Requirements list, the 2024 edition
Validation normally within five days, longer in busy periods; if missing information is not supplied within 28 days, the council returns the application without assessment
A decision target of 8 weeks for householder cases, per the council's householder page
What housing stock do Lambeth lofts and extensions start from?
Lambeth has an older stock than most of London: 40.2% of homes with a recorded build period predate 1919, 9th highest of the 33 boroughs.
Build period
Share of homes
Why it matters for a project
Before 1919
40.2%
Victorian terraces and villas; roof and rear work is judged against Parts 4 and 5 of the Design Guide and any conservation area
1919 to 1939
13.8%
21st of 33 boroughs; interwar houses with side space are a smaller part of the stock
1945 to 1972
17.3%
14th of 33 boroughs, tied with two others; post-war estates and flats, where householder permitted development rights do not apply to flats
Shares of the 147,160 Lambeth dwellings with a recorded build period. Source: Valuation Office Agency, council tax stock of properties (CTSOP4.1), as at 31 March 2025. The published bands have a genuine gap over 1940 to 1944, so the rows do not sum to 100%. Rank across the 33 London boroughs is computed from the same data.
What should you check first for Lambeth planning?
Check the address against the council's 62-area list, then the Article 4 page. Those two decide whether a dormer or rear extension can use permitted development. Then read Parts 4 and 5 of the Design Guide, which set out how officers judge an application, including the general rules of 1m side space above ground floor and 70% of the rear garden kept free of basement. For Lambeth planning the local detail is in the Design Guide, which expands policies Q11 and Q27 of the 2021 plan.
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How do we prepare a Lambeth planning application?
Lambeth's guide is measurable, so we test the design against its numbers before drawing the application.
1
Constraint check
We check the address against the council's conservation area list and Article 4 page, and note which rights are removed.
2
Measured survey
We measure the house as built, including side space to the boundary and garden depth, because the guide's tests run from those numbers.
3
Route test
We compare permitted development, a lawful development certificate, prior approval and a full householder application, and say which is safest.
4
Drawings to the Design Guide
Plans, elevations and sections are drawn against Parts 4 and 5, with a heritage statement when the site is in a conservation area.
5
Submission and liaison
We submit to Lambeth, answer the case officer and revise the drawings free of charge until the council decides.
Lambeth's live approval record
Lambeth's approval rate against the national one, refreshed as each quarter of MHCLG data is released.
Source: MHCLG planning application statistics (householder decisions, rolling year). Compare every borough on our London approval-rate league table.
81.3%householder applications approved in Lambeth
90.3%national average — Lambeth is 9 points below the national average
Frequently asked questions
What percentage of Lambeth planning applications are approved?
Lambeth granted 81.3% of the householder applications it decided in the 2025-26 financial year, 496 of 610, with 114 refused. That is below the London rate of 85.6% across 24,758 decisions and well below the England rate of 90.3%. It ranks 26th of the 32 London boroughs with a published rate, tied with one other borough.
How long does Lambeth take to decide a householder application?
The council says you should get a response in 8 weeks. In 2025-26, 95.0% of its standard decisions met eight weeks, 377 of 397. A further 213 decisions were made under planning performance agreements or agreed extensions of time, 198 within the agreed time, and those are left out of that figure.
How much side space does Lambeth require for a side extension?
The Lambeth Design Guide SPD says, citing Local Plan policy Q11 H, that the minimum retained space should be 1m between the extension and the property boundary above ground floor. It adds that much more than 1m may be needed where side space is important to local character. The guide treats this as a general rule, not a permitted development limit. The Local Plan's own wording of Q11 H applies the 1m minimum in suburban locations and says it should generally be retained; on corner sites or heritage assets it says side extensions may be unacceptable altogether.
How much of my garden can a basement take in Lambeth?
The SPD says Policy Q27 G limits a rear basement beyond the footprint of the host building to no greater than that footprint and keeps no less than 70% of the rear garden free of basement. The plan's own text says the basement should not exceed the house's footprint to the side or at the front and should generally retain 70% of the rear garden. The roof of any garden basement should be level with ground level and usable as amenity space.
How many conservation areas are there in Lambeth?
The council's page says there are 62, covering approximately 30% of the borough, and lists them, including Clapham, Brixton, Stockwell Park and Streatham Common. The national planning data register records 65. Three of those records do not appear on the council's list, so confirm the status of your own address with the council before you rely on permitted development.
Do I need planning permission for a dormer in a Lambeth conservation area?
Usually yes. Class B of Part 1 of the General Permitted Development Order, which allows many dormers, does not apply on article 2(3) land, and conservation areas are article 2(3) land. The Design Guide treats dormers as the most appropriate way to add roof space in a conservation area, but only if they are subordinate and traditional in form.
Which Lambeth conservation areas have Article 4 directions?
The council's Article 4 page lists nine, in all or part: Albert Square, Hyde Farm, Lansdowne Gardens, Leigham Court Estate, Park Hall Road, St Marks, Stockwell Park, Streatham Lodge and Vauxhall. The page does not give dates or say which rights each removes, so read the direction document for your street before you rely on any right.
What is the current Lambeth Local Plan?
It is the Lambeth Local Plan 2021, adopted on 22 September 2021, which replaced the 2015 plan. The council decided on 30 June 2026 to prepare a new plan and published its notice on 16 July 2026, and its timetable targets submission on 30 November 2028 and adoption on 30 April 2029. Until then the 2021 plan, the London Plan and two neighbourhood plans, for South Bank and Waterloo and for Kennington, Oval and Vauxhall, form the development plan.
Do I need planning permission for an HMO in Lambeth?
For a small HMO of three to six people, only where a direction applies: the council's small-HMO direction covers the Streatham Common and Vale and Streatham St Leonard's wards, in force from 11 August 2025, and is not borough-wide. The council's HMO page says renting an HMO to seven or more people needs planning permission for a change of use. Licences are separate: additional HMO licensing has applied borough-wide since 9 December 2021, a designation that by law lasts no more than five years, and selective licensing excludes Vauxhall and Waterloo and South Bank. Confirm your address before you convert.
Does Lambeth offer pre-application advice for householders?
Yes. The council offers pre-application advice and a general planning enquiry service, both paid, through online forms or a request form sent by email or post, so check its page and fee guide for current terms. Its guide says the advice cannot be held to bind the council when it decides a later application, but it shows how an officer reads your design against the Design Guide before you submit.
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