Planning and Borough Development Monitoring Report 2016 December 2016 Contents Contents .............................................................................................. 2 Executive Summary ............................................................................. 8 Local Development Scheme ........................................................................................... 8 About the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea ..................................................... 9 Strategic Objectives and Setting the Scene .................................................................... 9 Keeping Life Local ........................................................................................................... 9 Fostering Vitality ........................................................................................................... 10 Better Travel Choices .................................................................................................... 11 An Engaging Public Realm ............................................................................................ 11 Renewing the Legacy .................................................................................................... 11 Diversity of Housing ...................................................................................................... 12 Respecting Environmental Limits .................................................................................. 12 Places ........................................................................................................................... 12 Infrastructure Delivery and Planning Contributions ....................................................... 12 Planning Service Performance ...................................................................................... 13 1. Background and Methodology ..................................................... 14 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 14 Methodology ................................................................................................................. 14 2. The Local Development Scheme ................................................. 16 3. About the Borough ...................................................................... 19 Demography ................................................................................................................. 20 Health ........................................................................................................................... 23 Income .......................................................................................................................... 24 House Prices ................................................................................................................. 26 Business and Employment Sectors .............................................................................. 27 Shopping ....................................................................................................................... 27 Transport....................................................................................................................... 28 Open Spaces ................................................................................................................ 28 Air Quality ..................................................................................................................... 28 Flooding ........................................................................................................................ 28 4. Strategic Objectives & Setting the Scene .................................... 31 Duty to Cooperate: Regulation 34(6) ............................................................................ 31 Sustainability Appraisal / Strategic Environmental Assessment (SA/SEA) ................... 37 5. Keeping Life Local ....................................................................... 38 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 38 Protecting existing and promoting new social and community uses ............................. 38 Public Houses ............................................................................................................... 40 Local Shopping Facilities .............................................................................................. 40 Latimer ........................................................................................................................ 41 Kensal ......................................................................................................................... 41 Earl’s Court ................................................................................................................. 42 Vacancy rates within Neighbourhood Centres .............................................................. 42 Convenience Retail within Neighbourhood Centres ...................................................... 45 Protection of individual shops outside of designated centres ........................................ 45 Assets of Community Value .......................................................................................... 46 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 47 6. Fostering Vitality .......................................................................... 48 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 48 Town centres and ‘Class A’ town centre uses............................................................... 48 Meeting the need for new retail floorspace ................................................................. 48 Where is new retail floorspace being provided? ......................................................... 53 Retail development within town centres ...................................................................... 54 Mix of uses within town centres .................................................................................. 55 Character and diversity ............................................................................................... 56 Temporary Uses ........................................................................................................... 57 A2 uses ......................................................................................................................... 58 Launderettes ................................................................................................................. 59 Restaurants, cafes and drinking establishments ........................................................... 60 Street markets ............................................................................................................... 61 Business Uses .............................................................................................................. 63 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 63 Office Vacancy Rates ................................................................................................. 68 3 Exemption from changes to GPDO ............................................................................. 69 Creative and Cultural Businesses ............................................................................... 70 Arts and Cultural Uses .................................................................................................. 72 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 74 7. Better Travel Choices .................................................................. 76 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 76 Location of Development .............................................................................................. 76 Permit Free Residential properties ................................................................................ 77 Travel Plans .................................................................................................................. 77 Use of Public Transport ................................................................................................ 77 S106 Contributions of Highways and Transport Issues ................................................ 78 New and Enhanced Rail Infrastructure ......................................................................... 78 Crossrail 1 ................................................................................................................... 78 Crossrail 2 ................................................................................................................... 79 Conclusions .................................................................................................................. 79 8. An Engaging Public Realm .......................................................... 80 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 80 Planning Enforcement ..................................................................................................