Southwark Council's Planning Committee has refused McDonald's application to extend the opening hours of a proposed Walworth Road restaurant due to concerns over highway obstruction and safety.
The Planning Committee (Smaller Applications) met on Wednesday 7 October 2026 and voted to refuse the application to extend the opening hours of a commercial unit at 284-286 Walworth Road. The proposed hours were from 06:00 to 00:00 Monday to Sunday, a significant extension from the existing Class E permission which allows operation from 08:30 to 20:00 Monday to Saturday and 10:00 to 17:00 on Sundays and Bank Holidays. The application was submitted by McDonald's, who intend to occupy the unit.
Objectors had raised concerns about noise, anti-social behaviour, and transport impacts from delivery drivers. Supporters highlighted the benefits to the town centre's vitality and the night-time economy.
Despite officers recommending permission be granted subject to conditions, the committee voted to refuse the application. The grounds for refusal were that the applicant had failed to demonstrate that delivery rider activity associated with the extended hours could be accommodated without causing obstruction, congestion, and disturbance on the public highway. The committee was not satisfied that the proposal would avoid adverse impacts on pedestrian movement, accessibility, and highway safety, contrary to relevant local and London Plan policies. Specifically, the refusal cited policies P50 (highways impact), P51 (walking), and P56 (protection of amenity) of the Southwark Plan 2022, and policy T4 (assessing and mitigating transport impacts) of the London Plan 2021.
Officers had noted that the site is within a Major Town Centre with many existing businesses operating late hours and acknowledged concerns about delivery drivers and anti-social behaviour. They recommended granting permission subject to conditions, including an Operational Management Plan to mitigate these issues. This plan would have included details about staff training, CCTV, a commitment to deal with loitering customers, and daily litter sweeps. Additionally, conditions were recommended to ensure take-away services remain ancillary to the primary use of the unit as a restaurant. Concerns about the use class being Class E (commercial) rather than a hot food takeaway were also addressed, with officers stating that the onus is on the operator to ensure take-away services remain ancillary.
During the meeting, Councillor Sean Hannigan questioned whether the committee could prohibit a delivery service, to which officers responded that it was within their ability to make the permission subject to such a condition. However, Councillor James Moyse raised a point about the existing Class E permission operating from 8am to 8pm, which would not be affected by any new conditions applied to the additional hours. The key difference between the existing and proposed hours lies in the significantly extended operating period, particularly into the late evening and early morning, which raises concerns about noise, anti-social behaviour, and transport impacts from delivery drivers that were not as pronounced within the existing, shorter hours.
Ward Councillor Sam Foster recommended that the committee reject the application, stating that the plan submitted by the applicant did not adequately mitigate the concerns around congestion and space for delivery drivers and couriers.
Further details on the meeting and reports can be found in the Supplemental agenda No.1, Public reports pack, and Agenda frontsheet.