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Harrow, London

Planning appeals in Harrow

Planning appeals in Harrow start with the refusal notice. Harrow is a borough of family houses, and most of its planning work is householder work. If the council has refused yours, you have 12 weeks from the decision notice to appeal. We read the refusal against the Residential Design Guide, judge whether to appeal or amend, and prepare the drawings and statement.

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    Architectural model of a four-storey London stucco townhouse in its terrace, with a portico, area railings, sash windows, a cornice and chimney stacks
    The house as it stands: four storeys over a lower ground floor.Existing Proposed worksAn illustrative model, built for this page.

    How we work on planning appeals

    Seven steps from first call to approval.

    The same model cut through the middle: every floor, the stair, the chimney breasts, the new mansard, rear extension and basement in section
    Section through the model: every floor on one datum.

    1. Enquiry and constraints check

      We check the property against conservation areas, listed status, Article 4 directions, tree preservation orders, flood zone and planning history. We choose the right route and send a fixed quote.

    2. Measured survey

      We survey the house on one datum: rooms, levels, boundaries, drains, trees and the neighbours' windows that the 45° and 25° tests depend on.

    3. Design options

      We model the house in Revit and show you options in 3D and plan, with the planning strategy and the precedents in your street.

    4. Design frozen

      You choose an option in writing. Nothing changes after this without your say.

    5. Independent check

      A second chartered technologist checks every sheet against the council's validation checklist and the policy. A senior review signs it off before anything is submitted.

    6. Submission

      We prepare the forms, certificates, fee and documents and submit through the Planning Portal.

    7. Officer liaison

      We answer the planning officer and make any amendments within five working days, at no charge until approval.

    Free redraws until approval. Every drawing set is checked independently, and the checker is never the person who drew it.

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    Brick cottage with a tiled roof, chimneys and a front dormer window

    Planning appeals in Harrow: Harrow decides mostly householder cases

    Of its 1,362 planning decisions, 917 were householder applications, with 81.7 per cent granted and 93.7 per cent decided in time. Only 341 were minor applications, and just 60.4 per cent of those were granted, though 85.6 per cent were decided in time.

    The contrast is sharp. A refused extension to a family house runs against a council that grants four in five, so the officer's reason deserves a hard look. A refused small development, such as a pair of flats on a corner plot or a back-garden house, runs against a council that refuses four in ten, and the case then depends on the Harrow Local Plan 2021-2041 rather than on householder norms.

    Rear view of brick terraced houses in London with slate roofs and chimney stacks along the shared roofline

    Local figures for Harrow

    Figures with their unit, period and source
    MeasureValuePeriodSource
    Householder decisions917 decisions1 July 2025 - 30 June 2026assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
    Householder applications granted81.7 %1 July 2025 - 30 June 2026assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
    Householder applications decided in time93.7 % decided within 8 weeks or an agreed extended period1 July 2025 - 30 June 2026assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
    Minor application decisions341 decisions1 July 2025 - 30 June 2026assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
    Minor applications granted60.4 %1 July 2025 - 30 June 2026assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
    Green Belt share of the council area22 % of council area covered by green-belt polygons—planning.data.gov.uk
    Conservation areas31 named conservation areas published by the council—planning.data.gov.uk
    Households living in a house65.4 % of households living in a house or bungalow (detached, semi-detached or terraced)Census 2021nomisweb.co.uk
    Owner-occupied households58.8 % of households owner-occupied (owned outright or with mortgage/loan)Census 2021nomisweb.co.uk
    Domestic gardens share of land (GLUD 2005)34.7 % of land that is domestic garden (GLUD 2005)2005data.london.gov.uk

    A blank value means the figure has not been published, not that there are none. Check your own address with the council.

    Councils bordering Harrow
    Which application your project needsLawful Development Certificate decision: 8 weeks. Prior approval decision: 42 days. Householder decision: 8 weeksYour projectWithin permitted development?Lawful Development CertificatePrior approvalHouseholder applicationYesLarger rear extensionNoABC

    Which application your project needs

    The usual route for a house; flats and listed buildings follow other rules.

    A · Lawful Development Certificate decision
    8 weeks
    B · Prior approval decision
    42 days
    C · Householder decision
    8 weeks

    The Residential Design Guide

    Harrow's main guidance for house alterations is the Residential Design Guide SPD. It sets expectations for rear depth, side gaps, roof form and the treatment of corners, and a refusal notice may well quote it. Our first task is to compare the refused scheme with the guide's tests, one at a time.

    Where a scheme departs from the guide, the question is whether the plot justifies it. Gardens cover 34.7 per cent of the borough's land, and a long garden may tolerate a deeper extension than the guide's general figure. That argument needs a scaled site plan and a section to the neighbour, not a paragraph of assertion.

    Green Belt and heritage in Harrow

    Green Belt covers 22 per cent of the council area, and extensions on those sites are tested against the national rule on disproportionate additions. Harrow also has 31 conservation areas, 295 list entries, 9 scheduled monuments and 22 Heritage at Risk entries.

    In Green Belt cases we calculate the original volume and the proposed addition on a single table. In heritage cases we describe significance first. Either way the aim is to make the inspector's task easy, so the main point of the appeal can be found in the first few lines of the statement.

    Who owns and who builds

    65.4 per cent of Harrow households live in a house and 58.8 per cent own their home. That produces a steady stream of owners who extend rather than move, and it also produces neighbour disputes over overlooking, loss of light and the 45-degree line.

    The borough has an Article 4 direction on houses in multiple occupation, so shared-house conversions need permission. The appeal case then concerns amenity and parking, not design.

    Neighbours, overlooking and the 45-degree test

    Refusals often cite harm to a neighbour, and a common test is the 45-degree line drawn from the centre of the nearest habitable window. We draw it on the plan and on the elevation, so the inspector can see whether the new wall crosses it, and we add a section where a difference in ground level or a raised patio changes the picture. A scheme that clears the line on both drawings makes a straightforward case; one that crosses it needs a reason, such as an existing blank wall or a boundary fence.

    Overlooking is treated the same way. We show the position of every new window and its distance to the facing garden, and we propose obscure glazing or a fixed lower pane where that would settle the point. Offering a sensible condition in the statement often does more than defending the original design.

    How long it takes and what else to consider

    A written-representations householder appeal had a national median of 11.6 weeks, and 29 per cent of such appeals were allowed in the latest quarter. These are national numbers and not a prediction.

    Harrow handled 461 lawful development certificate applications in the latest return, and a Lawful Development Certificate can suit loft and outbuilding schemes within permitted limits. Our planning drawings service covers a revised application if that is the faster route.

    What we prepare

    A statement that takes each refusal reason in order, a coordinated drawing set, and a plan and section showing the neighbour relationships. A second reader checks it against the notice. The fee is fixed after the free constraints check.

    See the overview of planning appeals or the list of architectural drawings in Harrow. The decision rests with an independent inspector, and we promise no outcome.

    What you receive

    Planning drawing sheet for a rear extension with plans, elevations and sections
    Sample drawing. Planning drawings for a rear extension: plans, elevations and sections on one sheet set.
    Pencil resting on a dimensioned technical drawing beside a scale rule
    The street around you
    Move across the plinth — the blocks rise around the pointer.

    Other services in Harrow

    Planning appeals nearby

    Questions

    Why is Harrow's minor-application grant rate lower?

    Only 60.4 per cent were granted, against 81.7 per cent for householder cases. Minor schemes raise more policy issues than a house extension.

    Does Green Belt affect my property?

    22 per cent of the council area is Green Belt. Check your address; if it is inside, the size of the extension against the original house becomes central.

    Which Harrow guidance applies to house alterations?

    The Residential Design Guide SPD for householder alterations, together with the Harrow Local Plan 2021-2041.

    What is the deadline for an appeal?

    12 weeks from the decision notice for a householder case.

    Sources and dates

    City of London skyline glowing at dusk across the Thames under a dramatic orange sky

    Tell us about your property.

    We check the constraints, then send a fixed fee. Messages before 3pm get a reply the same working day.

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