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Matters specifically related to the London Plan, its development including the draft London Plan and related guidance.
The London Plan is the Mayor of London’s statutory spatial development strategy, setting London’s economic, environmental, transport and social framework for growth over the next 20–25 years.
Since the first version in 2004, it has been revised roughly every five years as successive Mayors set new priorities for housing, density and design. London borough local plans must be in general conformity with it.
Revision history:
- 2004 – the first London Plan, replacing central government’s regional planning guidance
- 2008 – consolidated with alterations since 2004
- 2011 – full replacement plan under Boris Johnson
- 2016 – consolidated with alterations since 2011, extended to 2036
- 2021 – current plan, adopted under Sadiq Khan
- 2026 draft – under public consultation, closing 15 October 2026
Key changes:
- 2004–2016: mostly incremental alterations (e.g. REMA, FALP) rather than full rewrites
- 2011: new density and housing targets replacing the 2008 framework
- 2021: replaced the prescriptive density matrix with a design-led approach; introduced “Good Growth” objectives and stronger affordable housing and sustainability requirements
- 2026 draft: consulted on until 15 October 2026, proposing new housing, transport, environment and design policies for the next 20–25 years, ahead of an expected 2027–28 adoption
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.
Will the London Plan deliver the housing and places London needs?
The draft London Plan proposes that 50% of all new homes be affordable. With competition for homes, industrial and other uses, some housing will be built in what is now Green Belt land.
This is an important subject covering proposals for housing development in London for the next 20 years.
We invited the London Plan team to talk about:
- The amount of housing required to meet London needs and the tenure and size mix required;
- Where and how the new housing will be accommodated by location and the types of [more…]
Planning in London, Issue 138, Jul-Sep 2026
Issue 138 of Planning in London, the journal of the London Planning and Development Forum, has been published, covering the period July-September 2026.
Contents:
- Housing, devolution & new towns — Burnham’s growth agenda, National Housing Bank.
- London’s office squeeze — shortage of prime workspace & economic impact.
- Olympia unveiled — Spparc & Heatherwick’s £1.3bn regeneration in Hammersmith.
- £9bn in unspent developer contributions — why S106 & CIL funds are stuck in council accounts.
- Planning policy & appeals — City Plan 2040 stalled, station-led development & rising appeal rates.
- High streets [more…]
Planning in London, Issue 137, April-June 2026
Issue 137 of Planning in London, the journal of the London Planning and Development Forum, has been published, covering the period April-June 2026. London Forum has a subscription arrangement whereby our members may read it.
Our AI-generated summary can be downloaded.
Table of contents:
- The housing delivery crisis from multiple angles (Berkeley halting land buys, the 84% collapse in starts, viability evaporating across most of London)
- The new NPPF and what [more…]
Planning in London, Issue 136, Jan-Mar 2026
Issue 136 of Planning in London, the journal of the London Planning and Development Forum, has been published, covering the period Jan-Mar 2026. London Forum has a subscription arrangement whereby our members may read it.
A useful AI-generated summary can be downloaded (included in website searches).
Table of contents:
- Planning Enables; It Doesn’t Deliver — the editors’ critique of housing delivery failure.
- New Kinds of Suburbia — Mallett on suburban densification and design-led approaches.
- Key Opinion Pieces — [more…]
Densifying the Suburbs – A presenter’s Insight
Our President, Ben Derbyshire, provides his Insights into our recent Densifying the Suburbs event.
I welcomed the invitation to speak at an open meeting of the Forum, ‘Densifying the Suburbs’ alongside Professor Tony Travers of UCL and local planners, Paul Lewin and Justin Carr from Waltham Forest and Brent councils respectively. My challenge – most people who have time to participate in their local civic societies will already be well housed, so what, I asked, should be our [more…]
Densifying the Suburbs – Meeting report
We held an excellent sold-out meeting last week examining the issues, with very interesting speakers and a rapt audience. The event page has been updated with a detailed report, event photo and the pdf presentations from Tony Travers and Paul Lewin. It can be found in our events archive along with records of previous meetings.
Measures to improve delivery of affordable housing in London
London Forum has responded to two consultations to boost house building, as follows.
A Government consultation on Emergency Measures for a temporary relief from the CIL and changes to Mayoral planning powers.
A GLA draft London Plan Guidance proposing time-limited changes to cycle parking, changes to housing design guidance and a time-limited planning route for the delivery of affordable housing.
London Forum believes neither [more…]
Densifying the suburbs
The next London Plan, with its much higher housing targets, will increase the pressure for higher densities in the suburbs. It could guide high-density housing / mixed-use development to high accessibility locations. The shape of the new strategy will be a key issue for the new London Plan.
Issues
- What is the vision? What should the strategy be? (Speaker: Prof. Tony Travers), and
- What would be needed to increase the density of the London suburbs? (Speaker: Ben Derbyshire)
How much should we focus on accessible locations – around stations and [more…]
The value of UK’s UNESCO sites
Britain’s World Heritage UNESCO-designated sites cover 14% of the UK’s land area.
A study described here will pioneer new methodologies to understand their value not just in economic terms, but the wider value of local partnerships and collaboration. It should help communities defend the four World Heritage Sites in London by demonstrating their outstanding universal value for use in considering planning applications and other potential causes of harm.
A.R.S Progetti, leading the study, has worked across governance, cultural heritage, education, urban planning, and environmental management.
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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.
...
Key policies in the NPPF
The following is a blog recently written by the lawyer Simon Ricketts which is intended to help developers to get a planning application approved. It is helpful for London Forum's members to understand parts of the new NPPF and for considering its ...
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Planning, Environment and Transport committee meeting
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Annual General Meeting 2026
📆 Wed 28th October | 18:30 - 20:30
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Wednesday 28 October 6.30pm at The Gallery, 77 Cowcross Street, EC1M 6EL Notice is hereby given to member societies of the 2026 AGM of the London Forum of Amenity and Civic Societies. Doors open for networking, drinks and nibbles from 6.00pm. Please book your place(s) using the booking facility ( https://www.londonforum.org.uk/events/agm-2026#booking ). Agenda Welcome and Introduction Approval of the Minutes of the AGM of 16 October 2025, available here ( https://www.londonforum.org.uk/agm-papers/ ) Chair’s Report – Chair Michael Jubb Financial Report – Treasurer Ali Dezyanian Approval of the Annual Report and Accounts for 2025-2026, available here ( https://…