2026 Annual General Meeting – Report & Videos
London Forum held its 2026 AGM with two guest speakers, and members representing twenty-nine societies on 28th October.
Chair, Michael Jubb, welcomed the audience, made opening comments, and introduced the speakers: Patron, Prof. Tony Travers, and President, Ben Derbyshire.
Each compelling talk was followed by a Question & Answer session. We’ve updated the AGM event page with a record containing photos, YouTube recordings of the talks, links to the speakers’ presentations and Q&A sessions, plus summary transcripts so that you can listen again, or review them if you didn’t [more…]
Status of London’s Local Plans
The GLA has published a map and information about the status of each Local Plan.
Mathew Pennycook MP told Council Leaders any local plan document being prepared in the legacy system which has concluded its final Regulation 19 consultation period by 31 December 2026 will be given a three-month extension. For these plans, the deadline for submission will now be 31 March 2027.
If you think the description for your Local Plan is incorrect, please let London Forum know
Below is a the live GLA data, extracted by PowerBI [more…]
Guidance for councils : Opening up access to planning information
London Forum has published 
Guidance for Councils on access to planning application information.
From 31st October 2026, the National Scheme of Delegation will send even fewer applications to committee, and the Forum fears decision-making will become less transparent. Drawing on best practice already in use by some councils, the guidance covers pre-application advice, clearer notices, full publication of comments and objections, access to case officers, more detailed officers’ reports, committee procedures, appeal notifications and [more…]
Draft London Plan response – linked policy by policy
The GLA’s consultation on the draft London Plan 2026 closed on 15 October 2026, London Forum submitted a 39-page response. This is the short version: the main points, then in ‘Our Comments policy by policy’, a one or two-line summary of key comments on each, with links to the GLA’s original text, and to the relevant section of our full response.
Why the draft Plan falls short
We agree strongly that the Government’s 85,000-a-year target [more…]
Planning in London, Issue 139, Oct-Dec 2026
Issue 139 of Planning in London (Oct-Dec 2026), the journal of the London Planning and Development Forum, has been published.
Contents
- The draft London Plan — 558,000 homes, Green Belt, densities, tall buildings
- The new NPPF — pro-development presumptions, station-led growth & viability
- Less say for councillors and communities? — the new scheme of delegation & front-loaded appeals
- Housing at a low ebb — record-low approvals, the Mayor’s City Hall Developer, and ideas for getting London building, including contributions by Dame Kate Barker (Spatial strategy) & Nicholas Boys [more…]
Development viability issues
Housing Community Summit, Liverpool, 9 September 2026
The Housing and Planning Minister Matthew Pennycook MP acknowledged in a speech the tough viability conditions for development, with margins squeezed by reduced interest cover and higher materials costs. He argued the government has nonetheless delivered on its earlier commitments. He cited the £39bn ten-year Social and Affordable Homes Programme SAHP (for at least 60% Social Rent), a ten-year rent settlement at CPI+1% with rent convergence, and £2.5bn of low-interest loans. He also mentioned restored Right to Buy discounts [more…]
![School [Freepik]](https://i0.wp.com/www.londonforum.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/School.jpg?resize=1000%2C624&ssl=1)
School closures
London Councils, representing local authorities in the capital, produced a report ‘Finding the Balance’ on falling education class numbers and the effect on school budgets.
They call for more consistency in school closure process and powers to manage surplus school buildings.
The news site MyLondon has published a similar article.
It explains that the funding allocated for each individual school is directly tied to the number of students it has enrolled so many individual schools are facing a funding crisis.
Planning Resources Are Stretched Thin
According to research by the Home Builders Federation (HBF) nine in ten local authority planning departments in England and Wales are understaffed, delaying planning decisions and threatening the Government’s target of 1.5 million new homes.
HBF’s Planning on Empty report is based on a Freedom of Information survey of councils across England and Wales examining staffing levels, vacancies, staff turnover and the use of agency workers during the 2025/26 financial year.
What is the situation in your Council? Responses are welcome
Presentation slides: Will the London Plan deliver the housing and places London needs?
The slides from last week’s London Forum/GLA event on the draft London Plan have been added to its event page.
Information for members
Within the ‘Resources‘ page of the website, ‘External Resources‘ provides links to news on London and on the activities of the Government and the GLA. Societies and London Plan team members can subscribe to several of these for periodic updates.
A new link to the Planning Portal has been added which is well worth monitoring regularly for news on proposals of Government and changes that they have implemented. The list of topics that you can read about [more…]
Didn’t find what you’re looking for? Try a new search:
Data Centre Noise
The UK Noise Association publishes a newsletter on the management of noise.
A webinar was held by the Association on ...
‘Floating’ bus stops opposed
London TravelWatch is the official consumer body for transport users, so when it speaks people in positions of power and authority ...
Grey to Green depaving
Forming a group of people with the same goal can be the first step in the successful planning of a ...
Draft London Plan response – linked policy by policy
The GLA’s consultation on the draft London Plan 2026 closed on 15 October 2026, London Forum submitted a 39-page response. This is the short version: the main points, then in 'Our Comments policy by policy', a one or two-line summary of key ...
Most Popular This Week
Member News
-
Member Services Committee meeting
📅 Thu 3rd December | 14:00 - 16:00
🚩 Room F3 70 Cowcross St, EC1M 6EJ (map)
-
Planning, Environment and Transport committee meeting
📅 Thu 10th December | 14:00 - 16:00
🚩 Room B1 70 Cowcross St, EC1M 6EJ (map)
Featured Pages