Planning Drawings in City of London
Fixed-fee, MCIAT-chartered planning drawings for City of London homeowners — City of London Corporation validation and local constraints handled from the start.
The City of London is the Square Mile: overwhelmingly commercial, with a small residential population concentrated in the listed Barbican and Golden Lane estates, the Inner and Middle Temple, and a scattering of conversions and mansion flats. Almost every home sits within a conservation area or a listed building, so permitted development can rarely be assumed and most alterations — even internal ones — need planning permission or listed-building consent from the City of London Corporation.
Near-comprehensive conservation-area coverage spans Charterhouse Square, Smithfield, Whitefriars, Fleet Street, Bank and the Barbican and Golden Lane, and Article 4 directions remove permitted development across these areas. A high density of listed buildings — including the Grade II-listed Barbican estate — means listed-building consent is usually required for external and many internal changes, and the Corporation's estate-management rules on the Barbican, Golden Lane and Temple frequently apply alongside planning. Strict townscape, protected-view and tall-building control run throughout the Square Mile. Because the residential stock is almost entirely flats within managed listed estates rather than houses, the work here centres on planning, architectural and building-regulations drawings rather than extensions or lofts.
We prepare City of London planning, architectural and building-regulations drawings that respond to this uniquely controlled setting, screening conservation, listing and estate-management constraints for your exact address before any design begins and preparing the heritage-led drawings and justification the Corporation expects. Because most applications are determined within the statutory eight-week period once validated, we work validation-first to avoid the queries that cause delays. The fee is fixed and agreed up front, drawings typically follow within about seven days, and we offer free redraws until consent is granted — the same Corporation-accepted drawings an architect would produce, usually at around 30% less.
Planning in City of London: what to know before you apply
In the City of London, permitted development can rarely be assumed: near-comprehensive conservation-area coverage and a high density of listed buildings — including the Grade II-listed Barbican estate — mean a full planning application, and often listed-building consent, is usually required even for modest works. Estate-management rules on the Barbican, Golden Lane and Temple frequently apply alongside. Because the residential stock is almost entirely flats within managed listed estates, we focus on planning, architectural and building-regulations drawings rather than house extensions or lofts.
Typical City of London housing stock
A very small residential population concentrated in the listed Barbican and Golden Lane estates, the Inner and Middle Temple, and a handful of conversions and mansion flats — almost all within conservation areas or listed.
Areas we regularly draw for in City of London
Barbican · Golden Lane · Smithfield · Temple · Blackfriars · Aldgate · Bank
What the numbers say about City of London planning decisions
These are City of London Corporation’s own reported figures, published by government rather than estimated by us. They are what we design against — a borough that refuses one householder application in five needs a different drawing package from one that refuses one in twenty.
Householder decisions in City of London
Every householder application City of London Corporation decided over the four quarters to 2026 Q1.
| Householder applications decided | 1 |
|---|---|
| Granted | 1 |
| Refused | 0 |
Source: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (PS2 district planning application statistics). Open Government Licence v3.0 Extracted 2026-08-16.
Permitted development in City of London
Larger householder extensions put to City of London Corporation under the prior-approval route, and lawful-development certificates decided, over eight quarters.
| Prior approval not requiredWent ahead without a full application | 0 |
|---|---|
| Prior approval granted | 0 |
| Prior approval refused | 0 |
| Building upwards, prior approval refused | 0 |
| Certificates of lawful development decided | 32 |
Source: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (PS1 district planning application statistics). Open Government Licence v3.0 Extracted 2026-08-16.
Designated areas in City of London
Conservation areas City of London Corporation has published to the national register, and when it designated them. Where a borough has supplied no Article 4 data the row is omitted rather than shown as zero.
| Conservation areas on the register | 28 |
|---|---|
| First designatedOf the 28 whose designation date the register records | 2,007 |
| Most recent designation | 2,024 |
| Article 4 directions in force | 1 |
Source: MHCLG Planning Data Platform. Open Government Licence v3.0 Extracted 2026-08-16.
If City of London Corporation refuses: appeal outcomes
Planning appeals against City of London Corporation determined by the Planning Inspectorate, 2021–2026. Enforcement notices and withdrawn cases are excluded.
| Appeals determined | 53 |
|---|---|
| Allowed | 16 |
| Dismissed | 37 |
Source: Planning Inspectorate appeals casework. Open Government Licence v3.0 Extracted 2026-08-16.
Planning Drawings for City of London homes: the package and the process
A planning set is judged as a set, not as individual sheets. Every existing drawing needs its proposed counterpart at the same scale and orientation so the officer can read the change at a glance, each sheet needs its own number, title, scale bar and north point, and the whole package needs to survive being printed at A3 without a dimension becoming illegible.
We draw to the conventions validation teams expect: plans and elevations at 1:100 or 1:50, a location plan at 1:1250 with the site edged red, a block plan at 1:500, and sections cut where the change in level or roof form actually happens rather than where they are easiest to draw.
The drawing list itself changes with the building. A detached house needs four elevations; a mid-terrace needs two plus a section through the party walls to show what is not visible from outside. Getting that list right at the start is what stops a validation officer asking for a sheet three weeks in.
What is included in a planning drawing set?
A council will only validate an application that contains the right drawings at the right scale. Our standard planning set covers everything a London validation team expects.
- Site location plan (1:1250) and block plan (1:500)
- Existing floor plans, elevations and sections
- Proposed floor plans, elevations and sections
- Roof plans where relevant, with heights and materials annotated
- A design and access or heritage statement where the borough requires one
How are planning drawings different from building regulations drawings?
Planning drawings show what the building will look like and how it sits in its context. Building regulations drawings show how it will be built safely — structure, insulation, fire escape and drainage. Most projects need both; our Complete package covers the two together with structural calculations coordinated in-house.
How quickly can you produce planning drawings in London?
After a laser survey, a standard householder set is typically ready within 7 days. We review every drawing against your borough's validation checklist before it reaches a planner's desk, which is why our first-time approval rate sits around 96%.
| Drawing | Typical scale | What it shows |
|---|---|---|
| Site location plan | 1:1250 | The property in its street context, site edged red |
| Block plan | 1:500 | The building's footprint and position in the plot |
| Floor plans (existing & proposed) | 1:100 / 1:50 | Room layout, walls, openings and the proposed changes |
| Elevations (existing & proposed) | 1:100 / 1:50 | Each face of the building and how it changes |
| Sections | 1:100 / 1:50 | A cut through showing heights, levels and roof form |
Planning Drawings in City of London — FAQs
What scale should London planning drawings be?+
Do I need an architect to produce planning drawings?+
How many revisions are included in the fee?+
Can you draw from my existing plans?+
Do planning drawings guarantee approval?+
Do I need planning permission for works in the City of London?+
Can I alter a flat in the Barbican or Golden Lane estate?+
What kinds of drawings do you prepare in the City of London?+
How long does the City of London Corporation take to decide?+
How much do drawings cost in the City of London?+
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