Planning
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Free Islington planning permission check

Check whether your Islington project needs planning permission in 90 seconds. Free, no signup, verified against the London Borough of Islington's 42 designated conservation areas, around 4,500 listed buildings and the council's published Article 4 directions. Extensions, loft conversions, basements, new builds, change of use, outbuildings and prior approvals all covered.

WarningThis tool gives general guidance based on public planning data. It is not legal advice. Always verify with your local planning authority before starting work.

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42
Conservation areas
around 4,500
Listed buildings
91%
Overall approval rate
11 wks
Typical decision time

Approval rate is the overall planning approval rate for all applications decided by the council, YE Dec 2025, per MHCLG Live Table P124.

Planning in Islington

Islington has a reputation as London's strictest borough for residential planning and the data broadly supports the qualitative reputation even if the headline approval rate looks high. The borough has 42 designated conservation areas and around 4,500 listed buildings, and the council has removed permitted development rights via Article 4 directions across almost all of them, plus earlier Article 4 directions covering pre-2020 office-to-residential change of use under the former Class O route. Almost every square metre of N1 Canonbury and Barnsbury is protected Georgian terrace, and uPVC windows are openly refused as a matter of policy. Islington's planners prioritise the retention of original sash windows, historic brickwork, and front garden railings, which means even replacing existing features without a formal application is risky. The borough handles the full range of residential projects: rear and side extensions, loft conversions (dormer and mansard), basement digs (tightly controlled under the borough's basement SPD), new-build mews houses on infill sites, Class MA change of use from commercial to residential, and listed building consent for alterations to Grade II Georgian and early Victorian terraces. The council's overall planning approval rate was 91% for year ending December 2025 per MHCLG Live Table P124, but schemes that get refused tend to be the complex householder extensions trying to push conservation area limits.

Why Islington refuses planning applications

The commonest reasons London Borough of Islington officers give when refusing householder planning applications - across extensions, loft conversions, basements, outbuildings and other residential projects - based on published committee reports:

  1. Harm to the character and appearance of a conservation area
  2. Loss of original Georgian or Victorian features
  3. Use of inappropriate modern materials (uPVC, render)
  4. Bulk, scale or massing unacceptable in a terrace
  5. Overlooking and loss of privacy to neighbouring windows

Islington council resources

Authoritative Islington planning sources you can cross-check:

Further reading
Read the full Islington extension guide →

Cost benchmarks, planning timelines and design recommendations specific to Islington homeowners.

Last reviewed by Jonathan Blewitt (founder, Mayfair Studio) on 11 April 2026. Approval rate sourced from MHCLG quarterly live tables (YE Dec 2025). Conservation area, Article 4 and listed building counts cross-referenced against planning.data.gov.uk. This page is reviewed quarterly.