Small Sites in London

Welcome to RCKa’s Small Sites research page. RCKa is a London-based architectural practice with expertise in innovative residential housing, including small-scale infill development. You can find out more about our practice here.

Frustrated by the difficulty of development on small sites in London, and convinced of their capacity to provide much-needed homes, we decided to undertake some research into the reasons why small-scale housing development is so hard. One outcome of this work was a comprehensive set of data relating to housing demand, capacity and planning policy for each London borough. We thought this might be useful to others with the same interest, so we decided to make it freely available to anyone who wants it. You can view the data for each borough by clicking on the table below.

We’ve also begun an experimental exercise to crowd-source small sites around London which may be suitable for housing development. Click here to find out how you can contribute.

Lewisham Small Sites Supplementary Planning Document

Working together with Ash Sakula architects, RCKa has been appointed by Lewisham Council to develop a Supplementary Planning Document for small sites to help encourage new housing development on plots of land below 0.25 hectares.

You can read more about, and contribute to, our work by visiting the dedicated website here.


Old Oak Common and Park Royal Development Corporation

Old Oak Common and Park Royal Development Corporation is a Mayoral Development Corporation.

Facts & Figures

0.00% Green Belt as Percentage of Total Area
Total area of designated green belt within borough boundary, expressed as percentage

655 Total area (ha)
Total area of borough, in hectares

0.00 Housing Density
Homes per hectare, excluding greenbelt and Metropolitan Open Land (MOL), 2020 estimate

Planning Statistics

32 3 Major Residential Applications Decided, 2020
Total number of "major" planning applications for residential dwellings decided by LPA during 2020

30 3 Major Residential Applications Granted, 2020
Total number of "major" planning applications for residential dwellings granted by LPA during 2020

32 3 Major Residential Applications Decided in Time, 2020
Total number of "major" planning applications for residential dwellings decided within required timescale by LPA during 2020

1 100.00% Percentage of Major Residential Applications Decided in Time, 2020
Percentage of "major" planning applications for residential dwellings determined in time by LPA during 2020

1 100.00% Percentage of Major Applications Granted, 2020
Percentage of "major" planning applications for residential dwellings granted by LPA during 2020

Planning Constraints

Planning Constraints Map

London Plan Small Sites Policy H2

Town Centre Boundaries

Green Belt

Conservation Area

TfL Station

Other Station

Green Belt & Open Land

For more information about green belt in Old Oak Common and Park Royal Development Corporation, click here.

0.00 Area of green belt
Total area of greenbelt, in hectares

0.00 Area of Metropolitan Open Land (MOL)
Total area, in hectares, of metropolitan open land

0.00% Green belt and MOL
Percentage of total area which is either green belt or Metropolitan Open Land (MOL)

655 Area of Borough, Less Green Belt and MOL
Total area of the borough which is not either green belt of Metropolitan Open Land, in hectares.

0 Total Area of Protected Open Land
Total area of borough designated as either Green Belt or Metropolitan Open Land

London Plan Targets

In the adopted version of the new London Plan, this target has been revised to 13,670; a maintained at of 0.00%.

35 0 10-Year Housing Target, 2015 Superseded London Plan
10 year housing target

24 13,670 10-Year Housing Target, 2018 Draft London Plan
10 year housing target

17 13,670 10-Year Housing Target, 2021 Current London Plan
10 year housing target. (Table 4.1 in the "Publication London Plan December 2020" version)

1 20.86 10-Year Housing Target Per Hectare, 2021 Current London Plan
10 year housing target per hectare

1 20.86 10-Year Housing Target Per Hectare (Less Protected Open Space), 2021 Current London Plan
10 year housing target per hectare (excluding greenbelt and Metropolitan Open Land)

33 0.00% Reduction in total housing targets
Comparison between ITP and EIP targets (percentage change)

0 0 Total Change in Housing Targets
Difference between 2018 'Examination in Public' version of the London Plan and the 2019 'Publication London Plan December 2020' version.

Small Sites

In the 2018 draft replacement London Plan, Old Oak Common and Park Royal Development Corporation's housing target for small sites (below 0.25Ha) was 60—0.44% of its total requirement. In the adopted version of the plan this has been changed to 60 which is a maintained at of 0.00%.

For more information on small sites in Old Oak Common and Park Royal Development Corporation, please click here.

35 60 10-Year Small Sites Housing Target, 2018 Draft London Plan
10 year small sites housing target

35 60 10-Year Small Sites Housing Target, 2021 Current London Plan
10 year small sites housing target. (Table 4.2 in the "Publication London Plan December 2020" version)

35 0.44% Percentage of Homes on Small Sites, 2021 Current London Plan
Percentage of homes to be delivered on small sites

33 0.00% Reduction in Small Sites targets
Comparison between ITP and EIP targets

0 Reduction in Small Sites Targets
Total reduction in quantity of homes to be delivered on small sites between EIP and ITP versions of the plan

0.00 Area of Green Belt within Small Sites Policy H2 Zone
The total area, in hectares, of land which is both designated green belt and within the London Plan small sites policy H2 zone, ie. within 800m of a station, town centre, or with PTAL 3 or greater

35 153 Historic Small Sites Housing Approvals (2010-2019)
Total net number of residential dwellings approved on small sites (<0.25ha) during period 2010-2019, based on date of approval. Note that these figures include duplicate applications for the same site.

34 43 Historic Small Sites Affordable Housing Approved (2010-2019)
Total net number of affordable residential dwellings approved on small sites (<0.25ha) during period 2010-2019, based on date of approval. Note that these figures include duplicate applications for the same site.

1 28.10% Affordable Dwellings as Percentage of Small Site Approvals (2010-2019)
Percentage of planning approvals for new dwellings on small sites (<0.25ha) defined as "affordable" during period 2010-2019 inclusive. Note that there may be duplicate applications for the same site on different dates.

35 0.39 Ratio of Small Sites Approvals to Publication London Plan December 2020 Small Sites Targets
Total small sites housing target in Publication London Plan December 2020 divided by the total number of approved dwellings on small sites (<0.25ha) during period 2010-2019 inclusive. Note that there may be duplicate applications for the same site on different dates.

34 0.23 Number of Dwelling Approved on Small Sites per Hectare
Total number of dwellings approved on small sites (<0.25ha), per hectare, for period 2010-2019 inclusive. Note that there may be duplicate applications for the same site on different dates.

35 3 Total Number of Planning Applications for Small Sites, 2010-2019
The total number of planning applications approved for small sites (<0.25ha) which include a net increase in residential dwellings. (Note that this the number of applications, not the number of homes approved within those applications).

34 2 Total Number of Planning Applications for Affordable Housing on Small Sites, 2010-2019
The total number of planning applications approved for small sites (<0.25ha) which include a net increase in affordable residential dwellings. (Note that this the number of applications, not the number of homes approved within those applications).

35 21 Total Completed Small Sites Housing Developments 2010-2019
Total number of homes on small sites (<0.25ha) consented within period 2010-2019 inclusive, which have also been shown as completed within the London Development Database.

35 0 Total Completed Small Sites Affordable Housing Developments 2010-2019
Total number of affordable homes within small sites (<0.25ha) consented within period 2010-2019 inclusive, which have also been shown as completed within the London Development Database.

35 13.73% Percentage of Completed Homes on Small Sites Consented 2010-2019
The percentage of homes on small sites (<0.25ha) which have been completed compared to those consented in the period 2010-2019, according to the London Development Database. Note that the total number of consented homes might include multiple approvals for the same site: the completed schemes, presumably, do not. Note also the likely under-reporting of this figure, as applications consented within recent years may not have been completed and therefore would not be included within these figures.

35 0.35 Ratio of Historic Housing Completions on Small Sites Compared to Publication London Plan December 2020 Housing Target
This figure shows the total number of completed small sites housing units which have been consented in the ten-year period 2010-2019 divided by the new London Plan (Publication London Plan December 2020) small sites housing target (Policy H2). Those boroughs which exceed 1.0 have delivered more homes on small sites the last 10 years than they are required to do under the new targets.

34 0.03 Density of Completed Small Sites (Dwellings/Hectare) Consented 2010-2019
Density of homes completed on small sites in the ten-year period 2010-2019, expressed as dwellings per hectare.

Housing Delivery Test

Old Oak Common and Park Royal Development Corporation's required number of new homes between 2018 and 2022 was 2,562. In this period it actually delivered 1,612 new homes, resulting in a Housing Delivery Test measurement of 63%.

As a result, planning applications for new housing within Old Oak Common and Park Royal Development Corporation will have to be determined as having a 'presumption in favour' of sustainable development, in line with paragraph 11 of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).

2022 Results

None

Action Plan

Buffer

Presumption in Favour of Sustainable Development

2021 Results

None

Action Plan

Buffer

Presumption in Favour of Sustainable Development

2020 Results

None

Action Plan

Buffer

Presumption in Favour of Sustainable Development

2019 Results

None

Action Plan

Buffer

Presumption in Favour of Sustainable Development

2018 Results

None

Action Plan

Buffer

Presumption in Favour of Sustainable Development

Note that the above maps exclude both Mayoral Development Corporations for clarity. See the ranking tables below for the performance of these entities.

35 0 NPPF Housing Delivery Test 2021: Number Required
Total number of new homes required in period 2018-2021, as defined by the government's 2021 Housing Delivery Test measurements

35 0 NPPF Housing Delivery Test 2021: Number Achieved
Total number of new homes achieved in period 2018-2021, as defined by the government's 2021 Housing Delivery Test measurements

0.00% Comparison of 2021 Housing Delivery Test (required) / London Plan Housing Targets (Publication London Plan March 2021)
Percentage of homes required to be delivered under the 2020 Housing Delivery Test (six year period, from 2018-2021 inclusive) compared to the Publication London Plan March 2020 version of the London Plan (annualised figures for four year period).

Housing Targets - Standard Method

0 Standard Method - Total Housing Targets
Total number of homes to be delivered using current standard method, according to planning consultancy Lichfields

Planning Policy

Planning Appeals

35 0 Planning Appeals Decided - 2018-2019
Total number of planning appeals decided between April 2018 and March 2019

35 0 Planning Appeals Allowed - 2018-2019
Total number of planning appeals allowed between April 2018 and March 2019

House Prices

£0 Median House Price, end of December 1997
Median cost of market-sale housing, excluding sales below market value (eg. Right to Buy), sales below £1,000 and sales above £20m

£0 Median House Price, end of December 2017
Median cost of market-sale housing, excluding sales below market value (eg. Right to Buy), sales below £1,000 and sales above £20m

Housing Stock

0 Housing Stock (2020)
2020 projected total housing stock

Vacant Dwellings

Brownfield Land

58 Area of Brownfield Land
Total area of brownfield land, in hectares, based on CPRE data

0 Projected Homes on Brownfield Land
Area of brownfield land multiplied by average borough housing density (based on 2020 housing projections), excluding green belt and metropolitan land. Note that this figure provides the potential additional dwellings based on existing densities rather than projected increases in density

0.00% Comparison Against London Plan EIP Housing Targets
Compares the potential development capacity on brownfield land against the London Plan (Examination in Public) housing targets. Note that a comparison against small sites targets is not useful as the brownfield registers might include large sites which exceed 0.25Ha and therefore do not count as "small sites" under the Policy H2 definition

Golf Courses

0.00 Area of Golf Courses not in Green Belt
Total area, in hectares, of golf courses which do no lie within designated green belt

0 Housing Capacity of Golf Courses not in Green Belt
The potential capacity for areas of golf courses which do not sit within designation green belt. There may be other protections (eg. Metropolitan Open Land) which apply, but which are not included within the data. For this data existing housing density has been calculated by excluding green belt land, but not MOL, as most golf courses that do not occupy green belt are otherwise designated as MOL

Homelessness

Demographics

Car Ownership

Air Quality