Planning permission needed to turn front gardens into parking spaces
Homeowners who want to pave over their front gardens will need planning permission under new rules which come into force today (October 1).
The rules are aimed at reducing the numbers of gardens which are being turned into off-street parking spaces – a trend that has been blamed for an increase in flooding in the capital.
“The increase in hard surfaces is contributing to London’s flooding problems. The more paved surfaces there are, the less rainfall is soaked into the ground and the more London’s dilapidated sewerage system struggles to cope,” a London Assembly study says.
“It is clear from what is already known that the huge scale on which London’s front gardens are being paved over is contributing to the over-burdening to the point of overflow of London’s underground drainage and sewerage systems during periods of heavy rainfall.”
According to London Assembly research, around two-thirds of London's front gardens are now completely or partially covered by paving, bricks or concrete.
“Green space equivalent to the size of 22 Hyde Parks had been lost as a result of people paving over their front gardens,“ said Darren Johnson AM, Chair of the London Assembly Environment Committee.
The LA report says that more and more Londoners are opting for paving because they are fed up with trying to find an on-street parking space.
“London drivers know all too well how difficult it can be to find a parking space in a city with high population density and in which there has been a proliferation of parking controls in recent years, making it more difficult than ever to find a space to park on the road.”
Property-makover programmes have also contributed to the trend: “A ‘minimalist’ garden is seen by some urbane city-dwellers as a statement of their cosmopolitan style and sophistication,” the report says.
Under the new rules, homeowners will need planning permission if they want to cover their front gardens with any type of hard surface:
“Planning permission is now required to lay traditional impermeable driveways that allow uncontrolled runoff of rainwater from front gardens onto roads, because this can contribute to flooding and pollution of watercourses.
“If a new driveway or parking area is constructed using permeable surfaces such as permeable concrete block paving, porous asphalt or gravel, or if the water is otherwise able to soak into the ground you will not require planning permission.
“The new rules will also apply where existing hardstandings are being replaced. The new rules apply to hard surfaces exceeding 5 square metres in area.”
October 1, 2008
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