Energy statements for London planning applications
An energy statement is the planning document that shows how a scheme reduces carbon emissions, following the London Plan's Policy SI 2. It is mainly asked for on major developments and by some boroughs on smaller ones. Our own team prepares it, with your drawings, for a fixed £445.
Fixed fee from £445 · all prices
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When a London planning application needs one
The London Plan's carbon policy, SI 2, sets a net zero-carbon target for major development. The Greater London Authority's Energy Assessment Guidance says that target applies to all major developments, those with 10 or more units and those with >1000m2 of floorspace, not only schemes referred to the Mayor.
That covers new blocks and larger conversions. A single house, a loft or a rear extension is not major development, and the policy does not require an energy statement for it. This is a page for the schemes that do, and for the smaller ones where a borough has still asked.
Energy Statements for Planning
from £445
Every price is the full fixed fee you pay. No VAT is charged. Council application fees are paid to the council separately.
What you get
- A check of whether your borough and scheme actually need an energy statement
- A baseline of regulated carbon emissions from SAP modelling by our team
- The energy hierarchy applied: be lean, be clean, be green, be seen
- The percentage carbon reduction against Part L, reported in the form planners expect
- An overheating and cooling check where the policy calls for it
- The statement as a PDF for the application, tied to your drawings
- Is one required?
We read the borough's validation list and the scale of your scheme against the London Plan test.
- Baseline model
We model the proposed homes to a Part L baseline using your drawings.
- Be lean
Fabric, glazing and services improvements that cut demand before any technology is added.
- Clean and green
Heat network connection where available, then on-site renewables such as solar or heat pumps.
- Report
Percentage saving, residual emissions and any offset payment, in a statement for the planning officer.
Smaller schemes: your borough decides
The GLA guidance recognises that boroughs go further than the Mayor. It says that boroughs are encouraged to use the same structure for energy assessments on non-referable applications and to adapt it for relevant scales of development. Some boroughs therefore ask for a shorter statement on a smaller scheme.
So the first job is to read your borough's validation list against your project. If it asks for an energy statement, we say what scale it expects. If it does not, we tell you and you do not pay. Building Regulations energy calculations are a separate matter, covered by our SAP calculations.
The GLA guidance is direct that energy assessments should be not submitted post planning in response to a condition.
What the statement has to show
The GLA guidance sets out the structure. A statement reports estimated regulated carbon emissions and reductions after each stage of the energy hierarchy, in tonnes per annum, and shows at least a 35 per cent on-site reduction beyond Part L 2021 for major development. For homes it also sets a benchmark of 50 per cent+ that residential schemes should aim for.
It must also commit that energy efficiency alone cuts emissions by 10 per cent for residential and 15 per cent for non-residential uses, show that the cooling hierarchy has been followed, and show that connection to a heat network has been prioritised. Smaller schemes get a proportionate version of the same logic.
Carbon offset payments
Where the net zero target cannot be met on site, the shortfall is paid into the borough's carbon offset fund. The guidance says boroughs are expected to use the GLA's recommended price, currently £95 per tonne of carbon dioxide, or to set their own from local viability evidence.
The statement states the figure for your scheme. That payment is a cost to the developer and is separate from our fee; we show it clearly in the report so it can go into your budget early.
Timing: with the application, not after
The GLA guidance is direct that energy assessments should be not submitted post planning in response to a condition. The statement belongs with the first submission, which also means the design is still flexible enough to act on what it finds, such as changing glazing ratios or roof orientation for solar panels.
For that reason we ask for the statement alongside the planning drawings, not at the end. If the design moves after the first run, we update the numbers, and we tell you before any extra charge applies.
Who does the work, fee and next step
Our own team does the modelling and writes the statement, from the same drawings, and no outside practice is involved.
The fixed fee is £445, the total you pay, and no VAT is charged. It covers a statement for a small scheme. For a large major scheme with a heat network study or detailed overheating modelling, we quote the extra work before it starts. Send the address and the scheme and we confirm what your council needs.
Sources
Every figure on this page, where it comes from and a link to the original.
| Figure | Source | Link |
|---|---|---|
| those with 10 or more units and those with >1000m2 of floorspace | GLA, Energy Assessment Guidance (June 2022): footnote 5 (source wording: "The net zero-carbon target applies to all major developments, e.g. those with 10 or more units and those with >1000m2 of floorspace") | www.london.gov.uk |
| >1000m2 of floorspace | GLA, Energy Assessment Guidance (June 2022): footnote 5 (source wording: "those with >1000m2 of floorspace") | www.london.gov.uk |
| 35 per cent | GLA, Energy Assessment Guidance (June 2022): 1.7 (source wording: "at least a 35 per cent on-site carbon reduction beyond Part L 2021") | www.london.gov.uk |
| 50 per cent+ | GLA, Energy Assessment Guidance (June 2022): Table 1, residential benchmark improvement over Part L 2021 (source wording: "50 per cent+") | www.london.gov.uk |
| 10 per cent for residential and 15 per cent for non-residential | GLA, Energy Assessment Guidance (June 2022): 1.7 (source wording: "reduce regulated CO2 emissions for residential uses by 10 per cent below those of a development compliant with Part L 2021 ... and by 15 per cent for non-residential uses") | www.london.gov.uk |
| currently £95 per tonne | GLA, Energy Assessment Guidance (June 2022): 6.4 (source wording: "the GLA's recommended carbon offset price (currently £95 per tonne of carbon dioxide)") | www.london.gov.uk |
| not submitted post planning in response to a condition | GLA, Energy Assessment Guidance (June 2022): 1.7 (source wording: "be submitted at the planning application stage, not submitted post planning in response to a condition") | www.london.gov.uk |
| adapt it for relevant scales of development | GLA, Energy Assessment Guidance (June 2022): 1.2 (source wording: "London boroughs are encouraged to apply the same structure for energy assessments related to non-referable applications and adapt it for relevant scales of development") | www.london.gov.uk |
The full guide lives on our sister site
We still prepare this for a fixed £445. The detailed guide to it is on propertyarchitecture.co.uk, part of the same practice.