®Planning appeal decision
139 Sherwood Avenue, London, SW16 5EE
Planning appeal 3364700 at 139 Sherwood Avenue, London, SW16 5EE (London Borough of Lambeth) was dismissed on 27 August 2025 by Inspector Burch S, by written representations. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: whether the use of the appeal property as a larger HMO would be acceptable in terms of its effect on the housing mix in the borough.
Change of use from small HMO (C4) to large HMO (sui generis) with 10 rooms, single storey ground floor rear extension, rear dormer roof extension and two rooflights to front roof slope
- Authority
- London Borough of Lambeth
- Appeal type
- major · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Written Representations
- Development
- residential · Change of use
- Inspector
- Burch S
- Postcode
- SW16 5EE
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- whether the use of the appeal property as a larger HMO would be acceptable in terms of its effect on the housing mix in the borough
- whether the proposal would adequately promote sustainable modes of transport and mitigate the transport impacts of the development
What decided it
The conflict with Policy H9 regarding loss of family housing and failure to demonstrate identified local need, combined with the failure to secure a CPZ contribution to mitigate parking impacts, outweighed the limited benefits of the scheme.
The adverse impact on housing mix and unmitigated parking demand significantly and demonstrably outweighed the benefits of efficient use of an existing building, potential provision of sustainable affordable housing, and compliance with space standards.
What the Inspector cited
- Development plan policies
- Policy H9 Lambeth Local Plan 2020-2035Policy H6 Lambeth Local Plan 2020-2035Policy H3 Lambeth Local Plan 2020-2035Policy H8 London Plan 2021Policy D4 Lambeth Local Plan 2020-2035Policy T6 Lambeth Local Plan 2020-2035Policy T3 Lambeth Local Plan 2020-2035Policy T4 London Plan 2021Policy T5 London Plan 2021Policy T6 London Plan 2021Policy H9 London Plan 2021Policy H11 London Plan 2021
How the Inspector dealt with each one is set out in the app, in order: the development plan, national policy, housing land supply, other considerations and the planning balance, beside the letter.
See how each was appliedThe decision letter
Town Planner Pro holds this letter. The Appeals plan opens it and every other letter we hold, all of them searchable, with the main issues and what decided each case picked out. We do not show letters on the free site because they carry people’s names and addresses.
With an account
What an account adds to this decision
More decisions in London Borough of Lambeth
The authority’s record since 2016 · every decision in 2025
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The main issues, what decided it, the planning balance and the policies and judgments listed as cited are read from the published letter by Town Planner Pro and are our summary, not the Inspector’s words; the letter itself is the record. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Research, not advice.