City of London rejects relaxation of 'change of use' plans

Government proposals to relax the regulations that govern "change of use" have been a key component of the Government's planning reforms and were first introduced in the spring growth review.

The Government has said it wants to make it easier for developers to convert offices into housing  in order to try and plug Britain's housing shortage. Scheme backers also believe the relaxation measures would bring many of the vacant office buildings that are spread across the country back into use.

However, the City of London Corporation has strongly opposed the relaxation of the "change of use" rules and has said that the changes would undermine London as the world's leading financial centre.

"Uncontrolled change of use from business use to residential use...has the potential to undo the achievements of more than 30 years of town planning strategies which have been successively endorsed by Planning Inspectors and the GLA," said a City of London report, Relaxation of planning rules for change of use from business to residential: Implications for the City of London.

The proposal to make it easier for developers to change the use from office to residential has been supported by the Treasury, the Government and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, who argue that it is necessary to help stem the country's housing shortage.

The Government had acknowledged the concern that rents for businesses may increase as a result of the change but they still advocated the change and had originally intended to implement it through secondary legislation.

The City of London Corporation said that the City "could and should be excluded from the proposed changes". The City’s report recognised the importance of residential use in the City but argued that it must be kept on the fringes because "the existence of residential uses removes...essential flexibility."

The report said that residential use would undermined the City's long lease structure, which would prevent development. It said that  the proposed changes would also push up business rents as residential values often exceed office values.

Officials within the Department for Communities and Local Government have criticised the plan, saying that it could be counter-productive and would antagonise local authorities.

It is now proposed that the “change of use” measures should be incorporated into the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), a document which lays out general planning guidance to councils.

Incorporation in the NPPF would create a “strong policy steer...in favour of change of use” which is all that is needed, the Planning officers Society said.

There is expected to be a final announcement on the proposals in the Government's autumn growth review later this month.