Camel & Artichoke, Lambeth

Client: Wellington Pub Company

LPA: London Borough of Lambeth 

On behalf of our client Wellington Pub Company, Boyer’s London office has secured consent at appeal for the extension and conversion of a pub near Waterloo to provide 3 flats on the upper floors and a retained pub at ground and basement.

The Council had refused planning permission on two separate applications: the first on design/heritage grounds, concerns over the loss of a first floor seating area of the pub, and lack of external amenity space for the flats proposed; the second (which removed a first floor extension) on loss of the first floor of the pub (despite subsequently agreeing that the pub as proposed was viable and that works had already been carried out to remove the first floor from the trading area of the pub) and lack of external amenity space for the flats.

The inspector agreed with Boyer that given the first floor area had already been separated from the pub trading area, the pub was occupied and trading successfully, and a viability report supported its ongoing viability, the Council had no sufficient justification to insist on retention of the first floor or preclude the beneficial use of the upper floors as independent flats. He also concluded that the lack of external amenity space for the flats, given the proximity to local parks and constraints of the scheme, would not give sufficient reason to withhold permission. Further that the proposed first floor extension (in the first application) whilst causing some limited harm to the locally listed building would be outweighed by the benefits of the extension for the layout of the proposed flats and living conditions for the future occupiers.

This follows other recent successes in Southwark for conversion of upper floors of pubs to residential use for our client Wellington Pub Company. We look forward to continued success in unlocking the potential of these sites to deliver much needed new housing on otherwise underused sites.