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The deepest planning news resource in London: a live tracker of every legal change coming into force, sourced directly from the legislation and GOV.UK, plus plain-English analysis from our Hackney studio — the team that files around 200 applications a year. New piece most weeks.
Latest · 24 September 2026 · Policy & legislation
A brand-new National Planning Policy Framework, the Planning and Infrastructure Act being switched on in stages, and fresh permitted development rules. Here is what the new planning laws mean for London homeowners, extensions and conversions.
Read the full analysis →2026 at a glance
Three shifts define this year. If you are planning a project in London, here is the short version — and how we are already working with it.
17 August 2026
What changed. The National Planning Policy Framework was wholly restructured — a fresh presumption in favour of sustainable development, firmer Green Belt and grey-belt rules, a presumption near well-connected railway stations and tighter viability tests.
What it means for you. Every application is now measured against a more rules-based framework. Schemes that align with the new policies should move faster; schemes that argue against them face a harder road than before.
What we're already doing. Each application is re-tested against the new policies before it is filed — design, use and site strategy are shaped to sit inside the rulebook, not fight it.
Phasing in through 2026
What changed. The Act's consenting overhaul is live, with more provisions switched on each tranche — statutory deadlines for consultations and decisions now press councils and inspectors to move.
What it means for you. Councils have less room to drift — but also less slack for applicants. An incomplete or weak application gets refused faster, not improved, so the quality of what you submit matters more than ever.
What we're already doing. Applications are prepared to be decision-ready the moment they're registered — full supporting information up front, no back-and-forth that burns the new deadlines.
27 August 2026
What changed. The permitted development rights for solar on homes were rewritten — new treatment for plug-in solar, fresh roof protrusion limits, stand-alone panels and a separate regime for blocks of flats.
What it means for you. If you were told solar needs permission, the rules have moved — many installations that once required an application no longer do, though the new limits are specific.
What we're already doing. The rewritten limits are checked on every project that includes solar or panels, and where a certificate is still the safer route we say so at the start.
Unsure how a change affects your project? See how we approach planning permission in London or ask the assistant below.
The changes tracker
Every planning law change now in force or phasing in, dated and linked to the legislation itself. We update this as each change lands.
Further provisions of the Act came into force, including new statutory deadlines for consultation and decisions on certain consent regimes — pressing councils and inspectors to move faster.
More of the Act is now live; the pace of decisions should tighten through the autumn.
Commencement Regulations 2026 ↗The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) (Amendment) Order 2026 came into force, rewriting the permitted development rights for solar equipment on homes: new treatment for plug-in solar, roof protrusion limits, stand-alone panels and a separate regime for blocks of flats.
If you were told solar needs permission, the rules have moved — limits are now different, and we check them on every project.
The Amendment Order 2026 No. 896 ↗The government published a wholly restructured NPPF alongside its response to the December 2025 consultation, the response on statutory consultee reform, and 2024/2025 Housing Delivery Test results. Decision-making policies are standardised across England, with a new presumption in favour of sustainable development, a firmer Green Belt and grey belt approach, a presumption in favour of development near well-connected railway stations, tighter viability rules and revived strategic planning through Spatial Development Strategies.
The rulebook every application is measured against changed overnight — decisions are more rules-based and less open to negotiation.
Creating a clear, rules-based planning system — GOV.UK ↗The Act's development consent changes came into force — streamlining applications for major infrastructure, cutting pre-application requirements, reforming examinations and speeding up decision deadlines.
Directly relevant to large commercial and infrastructure schemes; the effects ripple into housing land supply and borough planning.
Commencement Regulations 2026 ↗The fourth set of commencement regulations brought further provisions of the Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 into force the day after they were made, with the 24 July and 1 September tranches scheduled in the same instrument.
The Act is being switched on in stages — each tranche changes what councils can and must do.
Commencement Regulations 2026 ↗The General Permitted Development etc. (England) (Amendment) Order 2026 corrected errors in the 2015 Order and updated cross-references — including how Article 4 directions can restrict certain commercial permitted development rights.
Housekeeping rather than reform, but it confirms the 2015 Order remains the foundation of permitted development.
The Amendment Order 2026 No. 313 ↗Many provisions of the Act — including the framework for Environmental Delivery Plans and the Nature Restoration Fund — became formally in force, with further implementation to follow through the year.
Environmental assessments for developments — bats, newts and protected species — are moving towards a levy-based system rather than site-by-site surveys.
Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 ↗The biggest planning statute in a generation became law: faster consenting for major infrastructure, the Nature Restoration Fund, changes to compulsory purchase and development corporations, judicial review protection for implemented permissions, and cross-boundary strategic planning.
The Act's provisions are being switched on in tranches through 2026 — each one changes how schemes are assessed and how permissions are protected.
Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 ↗18 September 2026
We explain Hackney’s planning process, how neighbouring boroughs differ and what can delay a decision on your London property.
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