New dwelling approved at 2 Knaresborough Place subject to legal agreement
Kensington and Chelsea Council's Planning Applications Committee has approved the construction of a new dwelling on land adjacent to 2 Knaresborough Place, subject to a legal agreement to secure permit-free parking. The legal agreement is to be completed by 30 November 2026.
The committee convened on Tuesday, 20 October 2026, to discuss a range of planning applications, as detailed in the Public reports pack. Among the decisions made was the approval of a new dwelling at land adjacent to 2 Knaresborough Place. This approval is contingent upon the completion of a legal agreement, the details of which are to secure permit-free parking.
The application followed a previously refused scheme, which was rejected on grounds including harm to the streetscape's character and appearance, the loss of two protected lime trees, detrimental impacts on neighbouring living conditions, and the absence of a legal agreement. The revised proposal has addressed these concerns by significantly reducing the scale of the development. The previous scheme proposed a three-storey dwelling with basement accommodation, while the current proposal is predominantly single-storey with a limited two-storey element, omitting basement accommodation entirely. The design is also centred around the retention of the two lime trees and ensures no windows face neighbouring dwellings or external amenity areas. The dwelling is also designed to be car-free.
Officers noted that the site is a tight, infill site and that the proposed design, with its two-storey element set across the width and accommodating courtyard areas for the trees, is considered to sit in a juxtaposed position against the more formal terrace buildings on either side. A CGI streetscape image shows a modern aesthetic with a mist brick veil over the front of the building, and internal and external courtyards for the lime trees.
During the meeting, objectors raised concerns about the loss of sky view from their kitchen, dining room, and living room windows. One objector stated that By the developer's own figures, one of them will lose 62% of the sky I can see, and the other 42%. That is far beyond what the BRE Daylight Guidance treats as acceptable.
The council's assessment, as detailed in the report, is that while two windows are impacted and already receive low light levels, potentially flagging as not passing the BRE compliance test, the BRE guidance acknowledges that values used across the country might not be as useful in densely populated urban areas. Officers used discretion, balancing these impacts against how they would feel in real life and weighing them in the planning balance.
Further concerns were raised about the proposed development overlapping with what objectors consider to be their property. Specifically, an objector stated, the plans that you can see in front of you overlap with our entrance. And this is going to take a modification of our gate just to enable this to be built. And that's our space, that's part of Ettrick House. I don't see how this is even possible that they can remove our gate to build this property right on top of our steps, which is the entrance to our apartment.
The agent for the applicant stated that the revised proposals had benefited from pre-application advice and input from technical experts. They also noted that local residents and resident groups were invited to a consultation event, though unfortunately, there were no attendees. The agent asserted that the proposal is policy compliant and that there are no objections from statutory consultees or resident groups, although neighbour objections remain. The scale of the proposal has been significantly reduced from the previous application, and the dwelling has been designed around the retention and protection of the two lime trees. The dwelling has been designed so that no windows will face windows or external amenity areas of neighbouring dwellings.
