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16-20 Fordham Street, London, E1

PA/26/00286/A1Full Planning PermissionRefused
Full

Refused on 9 October 2026

Council decision: RefuseDelegated (officer decision)3 reasons for refusal

Approximate site (title boundary)
Boundary © HM Land Registry, © Ordnance Survey · details

This information is subject to Crown copyright and database rights 2026 and is reproduced with the permission of HM Land Registry. The polygons (including the associated geometry, namely x, y co-ordinates) are subject to Crown copyright and database rights 2026 Ordnance Survey AC0000851063. Conditions of use.

Proposal

Retrospective application for conversion of three x 3 bedroom maisonette flats (nos. 16-20) into six self-contained studio flats.

Received
16 February 2026
Decision level
Delegated (officer decision)
Public comments
0 · last counted 3 November 2026
Ward
Whitechapel
  1. Received16 Feb
  2. Validated16 Feb
  3. Consult.23 Mar
  4. Target13 Apr
  5. Decided9 Oct

Decided in 235 days (council typically 56)

About this application

This is a full planning application at 16-20 Fordham Street, London, E1. Tower Hamlets has handled 1,261 applications of this type. This one was decided in 235 days, 26 weeks longer than Tower Hamlets's typical decision time. The site is in the Myrdle Street conservation area, with 7 listed buildings nearby. There are no previous applications recorded at this address. In the past year there have been 134 applications across Whitechapel.

83% of full applications at London Borough of Tower Hamlets were approved. Across all application types, the council typically decides in about 8 weeks (median).

Based on decided applications received in the last 3 years.Planning something similar? See what gets approved on your street

Why it was refused

  1. - The proposed subdivision of three existing three-bedroom family dwellings into six self-contained studio flats would result in the unjustified loss of family-sized residential accommodation within the borough, with no family-sized accommodation retained or reprovided. The proposal would undermine the supply of larger homes required to meet identified housing needs and would fail to maintain a balanced housing stock. No exceptional circumstances have been demonstrated to justify the loss of the existing family-sized units. The development is therefore contrary to Policies S.H1 and D.H2 of the Tower Hamlets Local Plan (2020) and Policy H10 of the London Plan (2021).
  2. - The proposed development fails to provide a satisfactory standard of accommodation for future occupiers. Whilst the proposed studio flats broadly meet minimum internal space standards, the development would provide no private or communal outdoor amenity space, resulting in a poor quality living environment for future residents. The proposal therefore fails to provide high quality residential accommodation and is contrary to Policy D.H3 of the Tower Hamlets Local Plan (2020) and Policy D6 of the London Plan (2021).
  3. - The proposed development fails to secure an appropriate affordable housing contribution in accordance with adopted planning policy. No viability assessment or other robust evidence has been submitted to demonstrate that compliance with policy requirements would render the development unviable. In the absence of such justification, the proposal would fail to contribute towards meeting identified affordable housing needs within the borough and would fail to support the delivery of mixed and balanced communities. The development is therefore contrary to Policy S.H1 of the Tower Hamlets Local Plan (2020) and the Planning Obligations SPD.

From the council's decision notice.

Application details

Application type
Full Planning Permission
Scale / size
Small

Planning application dates

Date validated
16 February 2026
Consultation expiry
23 March 2026
Consultation end
23 March 2026
Neighbour consultation start
2 March 2026
Target decision date
13 April 2026

Applicant and agent

Agent
Cityscape PTA
Agent address
6 Spencer Way, London, E1 2PN

Planning decision

Statutory period
56 days

Publicity

Last advertised
5 March 2026

Additional information

Documents
7

Site constraints

Checking the site
2/3
Council recordsAppealsFlood risk

Designations that overlap or adjoin the site outline.

  • Conservation area: Myrdle Street
  • Flood zone 1: Low probability (rivers and sea)
Also checked, none recorded (23)

flood storage areas, listed buildings, Article 4 directions, tree preservation orders, green belt, scheduled monuments, World Heritage Sites, World Heritage Site buffer zones, registered parks and gardens, registered battlefields, Heritage at Risk entries, nutrient neutrality catchments, national parks, National Landscapes, SSSIs, Special Areas of Conservation, Special Protection Areas, Ramsar sites, ancient woodland, national nature reserves, local nature reserves, heritage coasts and brownfield registers.

A guide only, from official open data; it is not a planning search. Flood zones cover rivers and sea, not surface water.

Data © Crown copyright and others · sources and licences

Contains public sector information from planning.data.gov.uk (MHCLG and local planning authorities), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

© Historic England 2026. Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. The Historic England GIS Data contained in this material was obtained on 2026-11-03. The most publicly available up to date Historic England GIS Data can be obtained from HistoricEngland.org.uk.

© Natural England copyright. Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

© Environment Agency copyright and/or database right 2026. All rights reserved. Flood Map for Planning, Open Government Licence v3.0.

Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v.3.0. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

Source: Tower Hamlets

Contains public sector information from the Planning London Datahub, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

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