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Free 2026 London Planning Report — East Sheen SW14

Brick rear extension with bifold doors opening onto a paved London garden
SW14 · East Sheen · Richmond

Planning and building regulation drawings in East Sheen (SW14)

East Sheen reads as a quiet suburb until you start counting the roof forms. Walk from Sheen Lane down toward Mortlake High Street and the houses shift generation every few hundred metres: Edwardian bays give way to interwar semis, and around Mortlake Green a handful of older Victorian cottages sit closer to the pavement than anything built after them. Homeowners who want to extend here quickly learn that the district's character isn't uniform, so neither is the answer to "can I do this."

  • MCIAT chartered technologists
  • London Borough of Richmond upon Thames granted 82% of 1362 householder applications
  • Drawings in about 7 days

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Most of the enquiries we see are ordinary: a family on East Sheen Avenue wanting a side-return kitchen, a loft above Upper Richmond Road West chasing headroom, a rear addition off Mortlake High Street to open the ground floor onto the garden. What changes the drawing isn't the ambition, it's the address. A semi-detached house set within the planned, tree-lined layout of East Sheen Avenue carries different frontage and roofline expectations than a terraced cottage near the old Mortlake brewery site, even though both sit inside SW14. The conservation area boundaries running through East Sheen Avenue, Mortlake Green and Sheen Lane are the first thing we check, because they decide whether permitted development is even on the table.

Richmond Park's presence at the edge of the district adds another layer. Plots close to the park boundary can face scrutiny on scale and roof height that has nothing to do with conservation status and everything to do with protecting long views. And down toward the Mortlake riverside, flood-zone requirements start to matter for anything touching ground floor levels or basements. None of this rules out extending in East Sheen, but it does mean the drawings need to answer the site's specific constraints before they answer the client's wish list.

Planning in East Sheen: what to know before you apply

Richmond upon Thames does not run a blanket Article 4 direction across East Sheen, so many houses here keep their standard permitted development rights for modest single-storey rear extensions. The exception is anywhere inside the East Sheen Avenue, Mortlake Green or Sheen Lane conservation areas, where those rights are curtailed and a full application is more often required. Thames flood-zone considerations add a further check for anything near the Mortlake riverside, affecting how ground floor works and basements are designed and documented. Protected views toward and from Richmond Park can also constrain roof pitch and overall height on nearby plots. Because these controls vary by conservation area boundary rather than by postcode, we confirm the exact designation for your address before drawing, rather than relying on what a neighbouring property was allowed to build.

Applications are decided by London Borough of Richmond upon Thames — its planning pages.

Check your route

Does your East Sheen project need planning permission?

Route check · East Sheen (SW14)

Listed building?
Conservation area?
Likely permitted development — no planning applicationNeeds checking
  • A single-storey rear extension up to 4 m deep on a detached house, or 3 m on any other house, is Class A permitted development subject to the height and materials conditions.
  • An Article 4 direction applies here and may withdraw this freedom — the schedule must be checked before relying on it.
  • One or more constraints are unknown — we check the council's registers as part of the free appraisal.
  • Where permitted development applies, a lawful development certificate proves it for lenders and buyers.

Sources: GPDO 2015, Schedule 2, Part 1 · Planning Portal — common projects · Building Regulations 2010 — when approval is needed

This is a first-pass indication from the national rules, not planning advice for your property. Your council's registers, any Article 4 schedule and the exact dimensions decide it — the free appraisal checks all three before we recommend a route.

Confirm it with a free appraisal

East Sheen (SW14) in numbers

What London Borough of Richmond upon Thames has decided, and what SW14 is built of — the two facts that shape every job here.

Householder planning decisions — London Borough of Richmond upon Thames

East Sheen (SW14) applications are decided by London Borough of Richmond upon Thames; these are its published householder figures for the last four quarters.

Householder applications decided2025 Q2 to 2026 Q11,362
Granted1,113
Refused249
Grantedof 1362 decisions · England 90%82%
Decided within 8 weeksof 958, excluding prior approvals98%

Source: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (PS2 district planning application statistics). Open Government Licence v3.0 Extracted 2026-09-22.

Permitted development prior approvals — London Borough of Richmond upon Thames

How the larger-home-extension route has fared with London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, which decides SW14 notifications.

Larger home extension prior approvals — not required2024 Q2 to 2026 Q10
Prior approval granted135
Prior approval refused46
Grantedof 181 determined75%

Source: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (PS1 district planning application statistics). Open Government Licence v3.0 Extracted 2026-09-22.

Planning appeals — London Borough of Richmond upon Thames

Refusals in SW14 can be appealed to the Planning Inspectorate; this is London Borough of Richmond upon Thames's householder appeal record.

Householder appeals determined2021–2026379
Allowed169
Allowedof 379 · England 36%45%

Source: Planning Inspectorate appeals casework. Open Government Licence v3.0 Extracted 2026-09-22.

Conservation areas and Article 4 directions — London Borough of Richmond upon Thames

Register counts for London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. A count describes what the council has published, never a rank against another council.

Conservation areas in the register85 dated, 1969–202385

Source: MHCLG Planning Data Platform. Open Government Licence v3.0 Extracted 2026-09-22.

What SW14 is built of

Residential building form across East Sheen (SW14), from 271 classified buildings — the fact that decides party walls, side returns and loft headroom before any policy does.

Attached on more than one side51%
Attached on one side43%
Detached6%
Median building footprint72 m²
Addresses per buildingAbove about 2 means flats and maisonettes dominate1.23
Buildings classified271

Source: Ordnance Survey National Geographic Database (derived statistics). Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right 2026. Extracted 2026-09-22.

  1. Day 0Measured survey of your East Sheen property — or your existing plans if you have them.
  2. About 7 daysDrawings issued for your approval. Free redraws until you are happy.
  3. SubmissionWe validate against London Borough of Richmond upon Thames’s checklist and submit on your behalf.
  4. Council: 8-week targetHouseholder applications carry an 8-week statutory target. London Borough of Richmond upon Thames decided 98% of 958 recent householder applications inside it.

Source: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (PS2 district planning application statistics). Open Government Licence v3.0 Extracted 2026-09-22.

Neighbourhoods

Streets and neighbourhoods in SW14

East SheenEdwardian and interwar, with Victorian cottages in old Mortlake
Nearby

Nearby postcode districts

Barnes SW13Putney SW15Balham SW12Streatham SW16Battersea SW11Tooting SW17World's End SW10Earlsfield SW18
FAQ

East Sheen (SW14) — FAQs

Do I need planning permission for a loft conversion in East Sheen?+
It depends on whether your house sits inside one of the conservation areas covering East Sheen Avenue, Mortlake Green or Sheen Lane. SW14 doesn't carry a blanket direction removing permitted development, so a straightforward rear dormer outside those boundaries may still qualify for a lighter-touch route, while the same design on a protected street is likely to need a full application. We check the designation for your specific property before proposing a route.
Will a rear extension in SW14 need to consider Richmond Park or flood risk?+
Only in certain locations. Houses near the Richmond Park boundary can face design control aimed at protecting long views, which mainly affects roof form and overall height rather than footprint. Properties closer to the Mortlake riverside may need to address Thames flood-zone requirements in how the ground floor and any basement work is detailed. We verify this against your address rather than assuming either way.
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