Planning permission in Richmond upon Thames
Constraints: planning.data.gov.uk (ingested 2026-08-01) · Prices: HM Land Registry UK House Price Index, December 2025 · 175 sales in December 2025 · Open Government Licence
Planning in Richmond upon Thames — the detail
Richmond upon Thames is the most conservation-dense borough in London — 86 designated conservation areas, more than any other authority Planning Permission Checker covers. They span Richmond Hill and Richmond Riverside, Kew Green and the Royal Botanic Gardens (a World Heritage Site), Petersham and Ham Common, Strawberry Hill, St Margaret's Estate, the Twickenham and Teddington riverside, and the Castelnau and Barnes streets across the river. The Thames and its protected views add a layer of landscape control on top of the usual conservation scrutiny of roofs, materials and rear additions — the view from Richmond Hill is protected by its own Act of Parliament.
The borough's defining householder control is its basement Article 4 direction. Richmond made a direction in February 2017 that, from 1 April 2018, removed permitted development rights for basement and subterranean development across the whole borough other than the areas of greatest flood hazard — so a basement anywhere in Richmond needs planning permission and must meet the council's basement and flood-risk policies. The borough's House Extensions and External Alterations SPD (2015) sets the detailed design expectations, and it applies to every house whether or not it sits in a conservation area; the Residential Development Standards SPD covers daylight, outlook and privacy.
Outside the conservation areas, Richmond's suburban and villa stock supports the usual rear extensions, side returns and loft conversions, with prior approval a route for larger rear extensions on unconstrained houses. But conservation coverage is so extensive here that the address-level check is decisive — many ordinary-looking streets fall inside a designated area where a full application and careful detailing are the norm.
Policy detail lives in the Richmond upon Thames local plan and applications are submitted via the Richmond upon Thames planning portal.
Conservation areas in Richmond upon Thames
Real · planning.data.gov.ukEvery designated conservation area in Richmond upon Thames from the official dataset — inside one, permitted development narrows and design scrutiny rises.
- Amyand Park Road
- Barnes Common
- Barnes Green
- Belmont Road
- Beresford Avenue
- Blackmore's Grove
- Broad Street
- Broom Water
- Burlington Avenue and West Park Road
- Bushy Park
- Bushy Park Gardens
- Cambridge Park
- Castelnau
- Central Richmond
- Christ Church Road
- Church Road
- Cole Park Road
- Cowley Road
- Crown Road
- East Sheen Avenue
- Fieldend
- Ham Common
- Ham House
- Hamilton Road
- Hampton Court Green
- Hampton Court Park
- Hampton Village
- Hampton Wick
- Hanworth Road
- High Street Hampton Hill
- High Street Teddington
- Holmesdale Avenue
- Joanna Southcott Chapel
- Kew Foot Road
- Kew Gardens
- Kew Green
- Kew Road
- King Edwards Grove
- Lawn Crescent
- Madrid Road
- Mallard Place
- Mays Road
- Mill Hill
- Model Cottages
- Mortlake
- Mortlake Green
- Normansfield
- Oaklands Estate
- Old Deer Park
- Park Road (Teddington)
- Parkleys Estate
- Petersham
- Platt's Eyot
- Pope's Avenue
- Queen's Road (Mortlake)
- Queen's Road (Twickenham)
- Richmond Green
- Richmond Hill
- Richmond Park
- Richmond Riverside
…plus 26 further designated areas.
Source: planning.data.gov.uk · Open Government Licence. Boundaries are checked at address level by the area report.
Article 4 directions in Richmond upon Thames
Real · planning.data.gov.ukNo Article 4 geometry for Richmond appears in the national planning.data.gov.uk dataset, but the borough operates a significant one: a direction made in February 2017 that, from 1 April 2018, removed permitted development rights for basement and subterranean development across the whole borough except the areas of greatest flood hazard — so every basement here needs planning permission. A further direction covers parts of the flood-hazard area. Check the council's Article 4 register and basement pages for the position at a specific address.
Source: planning.data.gov.uk · Open Government Licence. Checked at address level by the area report.
Key Richmond upon Thames planning figures
| Conservation areas | 86 |
| Article 4 directions | — |
| Householder applications granted | 81.7% (1,113 of 1,362) |
| London average grant rate | 85.6% |
| Rank for lowest grant rate | 9 of 33 |
| Average house price | £798,928 |
| Annual price change | -0.4% |
Conservation areas and Article 4 directions: planning.data.gov.uk, ingested 2026-08-01 · Householder approval rates: MHCLG district planning application statistics (PS2), 2025 Q2 to 2026 Q1 · House prices: HM Land Registry UK House Price Index, December 2025 · Open Government Licence. Figures are as published on those dates; a designation missing from the national dataset is a gap in the dataset, not proof it does not exist.
What gets built in Richmond upon Thames
Single-storey rear extensions are unaffected by the basement Article 4, but conservation coverage is extensive — check whether the address sits in a designated area.
Rear extension in Richmond upon Thames →Common on the Victorian terraces of Richmond, Twickenham and Teddington; conservation designation decides whether it's PD or a full application.
Side return extension in Richmond upon Thames →Feasible on much of the suburban stock under PD; in the borough's many conservation areas, dormer form and a full application are the rule.
Loft conversion in Richmond upon Thames →A borough-wide Article 4 (since 2018) removes PD for basements except in the greatest flood-hazard areas — every basement here needs planning permission and flood-risk evidence.
Basement extension in Richmond upon Thames →PD allowances often apply on larger plots, but conservation-area designation (extensive here) removes them — and the structure must stay incidental and within height limits.
Garden room in Richmond upon Thames →Richmond upon Thames postcode by postcode
TW9 covers Central Richmond, Richmond Green and Richmond Riverside, and at Kew the Kew Green and Kew Gardens conservation areas ar…
TW9 planning report →TW10 runs from Richmond Hill — whose view over the Thames is protected by its own Act of Parliament — through the Petersham, Ham C…
TW10 planning report →TW1 spans Twickenham Riverside and Twickenham Green, the St Margaret's Estate and Cole Park Road conservation areas, with Strawber…
TW1 planning report →TW11 is Teddington — the High Street Teddington and Teddington Lock conservation areas and the Broom Water riverside. Much of the …
TW11 planning report →SW14 covers Mortlake and Mortlake Green, the East Sheen Avenue and Sheen Lane conservation areas, and Sheen Common. Terrace and se…
SW14 planning report →SW13 is Barnes — riverside and common-edge streets in Richmond upon Thames, with extensive conservation coverage. Single-storey re…
SW13 planning report →TW2 covers Twickenham and the Whitton fringe, spanning Richmond and Hounslow. Victorian terraces and suburban streets mix with ext…
TW2 planning report →TW12 is Hampton in Richmond upon Thames — riverside and village streets with substantial conservation coverage. Design scrutiny on…
TW12 planning report →Richmond upon Thames planning, asked straight
Do I need planning permission for a basement in Richmond upon Thames?
Is my Richmond home in a conservation area?
Can I extend under permitted development in Richmond?
What do Richmond's protected river views mean for my project?
How do I check constraints for a Richmond address?
Related reading
The biggest space gain in London — bought at the steepest price.
Read the guide →Designated land edits the rulebook — here's the exact redline.
Read the guide →Almost every London extension, loft and basement engages this Act. Here's how it actually works.
Read the guide →What applies at your address?
Borough-level rules only narrow it down. Enter a Richmond upon Thames postcode for the live constraint check — conservation area, Article 4 and sold-price comparables, cited to source.
Need it in writing for one address? A planning permission report for a Richmond upon Thames property — from £59, or surveyor-reviewed from £295.
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