Controversial new wording in Sadiq Khan’s draft London Plan has the potential to put thousands of small schemes on ice by reintroducing affordable contributions.
Under current planning policy, schemes of 10 units or fewer, or 1,000 sq m, do not have to make affordable contributions.
However, new wording in the draft plan encourages boroughs to secure section 106 contributions for smaller sites when setting out their development plans.
It says: “London has significant unmet need for affordable housing. For some boroughs, sites of 10 or fewer units are the main source of supply and play an important role in contributing to affordable housing delivery, often via cash-in-lieu contributions which are then used as part of borough-wide affordable housing programmes.
“Given the important role these sites play, the mayor believes that boroughs should be capable of securing cash-in-lieu contributions for affordable housing contributions from such sites. Therefore, boroughs are encouraged to include policies requiring affordable housing from such sites of 10 or fewer units in their development plans.”
EG research across the central London boroughs said there had been 3,089 schemes since 2010 of between five and 10 homes. The additional affordable requirements could not only put their viability at risk, but also lead to delays in the planning process by adding further negotiations about the size of the contributions.
The new requirement also comes despite the fact the plan focuses heavily on bringing forward and enabling small sites.
The draft has set out ambitious targets to build 64,935 homes per annum. The small sites policy sets a target of 24,573 homes – 38% – to be from small schemes.
At the time of writing, the GLA had not responded to requests for clarification.
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