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Tower Hamlets, London

Planning appeals in Tower Hamlets

Tower Hamlets is a borough of flats, and its decision record reflects that: the council made 427 minor decisions in the latest year against only 191 householder ones. A householder appeal must be lodged within 12 weeks; other appeals have a longer limit. We read the refusal, judge whether it can be answered 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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    Rows of brick terraced houses and gardens on a residential street

    Dense-borough policy behind a Tower Hamlets refusal

    There is no council rule for appeals themselves. The refusal will instead rest on the Tower Hamlets Local Plan 2031: Managing Growth and Sharing the Benefits, and in a dense borough the supporting documents are about density and amenity: the Central Area Good Growth SPD and the High Density Living SPD.

    That changes what an appeal argues. Instead of whether an extension is polite to its neighbour, the question is often daylight to a courtyard, outlook from a bedroom or the amenity space a flat is left with. Those are measurable, so the case rests on drawings, section lines and, where a refusal cites light, a proper daylight assessment rather than opinion.

    We therefore begin by listing the specific amenity test the officer applied and the measurement behind it. If the measurement was a rule of thumb rather than a calculation, an appeal can reasonably challenge it. We also look at what the officer's report says about the alternatives you offered, because an inspector will want to see that a lesser scheme was considered and why it was rejected.

    Georgian brick terrace with sash windows, arched fanlight doorways, stone steps and iron railings in London

    Local figures for Tower Hamlets

    Figures with their unit, period and source
    MeasureValuePeriodSource
    Householder decisions191 decisions1 July 2025 - 30 June 2026assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
    Householder applications granted92.7 %1 July 2025 - 30 June 2026assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
    Minor application decisions427 decisions1 July 2025 - 30 June 2026assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
    Minor applications granted84.3 %1 July 2025 - 30 June 2026assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
    Minor applications decided in time92.3 % decided within 8 weeks or an agreed extended period1 July 2025 - 30 June 2026assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
    Households living in a house12 % of households living in a house or bungalow (detached, semi-detached or terraced)Census 2021nomisweb.co.uk
    Conservation areas59 named conservation areas published by the council—planning.data.gov.uk
    Article 4 directions64 Article 4 directions published by the council—planning.data.gov.uk
    DMPO 2015 art 37(2)(a): householder appeal, from the date of the decision notice12 weeks—legislation.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 Tower Hamlets
    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

    A borough where minor applications dominate

    In the latest year the council granted 84.3 per cent of 427 minor applications, and decided 92.3 per cent in time. Householder cases were fewer, 191, with 92.7 per cent granted and 95.8 per cent decided in time.

    Only 12 per cent of households here live in a house or bungalow, and 23.1 per cent own their home. A typical appeal client is therefore as likely to be a leaseholder converting space inside a building, or a small developer, as a homeowner extending a terrace.

    Which category your scheme falls into decides your deadline. Householder alterations get 12 weeks; other applications get 6 months from the decision notice (or expiry of the decision period). Check before assuming you have longer. The clock runs from the date on the notice, not from the day you open the letter, so send the notice to us on the day it arrives, with the officer's report if you have it.

    Designations that can sit behind the refusal

    The borough publishes 59 conservation areas, 64 Article 4 directions and 72 tree preservation orders. Historic England records 916 listed entries and 39 heritage-at-risk entries within the boundary.

    For a flat or a converted warehouse, a listed building or a conservation area may govern windows, roof terraces and the height of a rooftop addition. We check each designation against your address and put the evidence for the relevant one up front in the grounds of appeal. Photographs of the building and of the street from the angles the council used are often the most persuasive exhibits, so we plan the set before anyone visits. Where listed building consent is involved it is a separate matter from planning permission, and an appeal under one does not settle the other.

    How long to expect, and a quicker option

    Nationally, the Inspectorate's latest figures show a median of 11.6 weeks for householder appeals by written representations, and 18 weeks across all written-representation cases over twelve months. Those are national numbers, not a forecast.

    For a narrow refusal, a revised planning application in Tower Hamlets can be faster. Where a flat's use or layout is what the council objected to, our work on lawful development certificates in Tower Hamlets may settle the question without an appeal at all.

    What you get from us

    We prepare accurate existing and proposed drawings, the grounds of appeal and a concise statement, then check each against the refusal reasons. A second MCIAT chartered technologist reviews the set, and we make no promise of outcome: the inspector is independent.

    We give a fixed quote after a free constraints check. More on the borough is in architectural drawings in Tower Hamlets, and nearby you can compare planning appeals in Hackney and planning appeals in Newham.

    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.
    Brick cottage with a tiled roof, chimneys and a front dormer window
    The street around you
    Move across the plinth — the blocks rise around the pointer.

    Other services in Tower Hamlets

    Planning appeals nearby

    Questions

    I am a leaseholder in a Tower Hamlets block. Can I appeal a refusal?

    Yes, if you made the application. Your lease and the freeholder's consent are separate from the planning route, so we check both before work starts.

    Which deadline applies to my appeal?

    Householder alterations have 12 weeks from the decision notice. Other planning appeals have a longer limit, and you should confirm the category on your notice.

    Can a daylight problem be answered on appeal?

    Often yes, with a proper assessment rather than a rule of thumb. We say frankly if the measurement looks sound.

    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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