Haringey Planning Consultant
From Highgate villas to Tottenham Hale
Haringey is really two planning landscapes. The west has Highgate, Muswell Hill and Crouch End, with conservation areas and Edwardian roofscapes. The east has Tottenham and Wood Green, where two Opportunity Areas and an HMO Article 4 Direction drive most decisions. Cedar Planning writes applications that deal with whichever side your site is on.
Our work is led by Dan Malloy MRTPI, a Chartered Town Planner. Cedar is based in Norfolk and takes on projects across England, including north London, with site visits arranged as each job requires.
- RTPI Chartered
- Fixed-fee quotations
- Direct advice from a Chartered Planner
Four 2017 documents, and one plan to replace them
Haringey's adopted development plan is split across four documents, all dating from 2017: the Strategic Policies (with its 2017 alterations), the Development Management DPD adopted in July 2017, the Site Allocations DPD and the Tottenham Area Action Plan. An application will usually engage at least two of them, plus the London Plan.
The council is consolidating all four into a single New Local Plan. Its draft, in three parts covering placemaking, neighbourhood policies and borough-wide policies, was consulted on from 10 October to 19 December 2025, and the council reports feedback from more than 10,000 people. A Proposed Submission (Regulation 19) version is scheduled for the second half of 2026, followed by examination.
For now the 2017 policies remain the starting point. The draft plan is a material consideration, but its weight is modest until the submission version has been tested, so applicants should read both side by side on larger sites.
Strategic policy sets the pattern of growth. SP1 on managing growth directs most new homes and jobs to Tottenham and Wood Green, with SP11 on design and SP12 on conservation applying everywhere.
Small HMOs in the east need permission
An Article 4 Direction removes the permitted development right to change a family house (Class C3) into a small HMO (Class C4) across most of the east of the borough. HMO licensing is separate, so a licence does not replace planning permission. Proposals are tested against Policy DM17.
What makes Haringey planning different
Policy DM39 deals specifically with warehouse living, a live-work form found on parts of the borough's employment land. Separately, an Article 4 removes the B8 storage to residential permitted development right in designated employment areas.
Five conservation areas combine as the Tottenham High Road Historic Corridor, including Bruce Grove, Tottenham Green and Seven Sisters/Page Green, so shopfront and upper floor schemes need a heritage case.
Policy DM6 guides building heights and DM5 protects locally significant views and vistas, so height and massing are tested well beyond the two growth areas.
Policy DM16 governs subdividing houses into flats, and the council weighs the loss of family housing, the unit mix and the standard of each new flat before supporting a conversion.
Haringey planning services
We quote a fixed fee for each piece of work. The services below are the ones Haringey clients most often need.
HMO Planning Permission
Applications for C4 and larger sui generis HMOs in Tottenham, Wood Green and Harringay, addressing DM17, concentration of HMOs and the Article 4 Direction.
View serviceHeritage Statements
Statements for listed buildings and conservation areas from Highgate and Muswell Hill to Noel Park and Tower Gardens, written against DM9 on the historic environment.
View servicePlanning Applications
New homes on infill, backland and garden sites under DM7, mixed-use schemes near Wood Green and applications within the Tottenham AAP area.
View serviceHouseholder Applications
Loft dormers, rear extensions and basements to Crouch End and Hornsey terraces, set against DM1 design quality and DM18 on basements and lightwells.
View servicePlanning Statements
Clear statements that pull together the four 2017 documents, the London Plan and the emerging plan so officers can see the policy case quickly.
View servicePlanning Objections
Policy-based objections for residents and groups concerned about height, HMO concentration or heritage harm from a neighbouring proposal.
View serviceDevelopment Management policies and London Plan tests
The Development Management DPD numbers its policies from DM1 to DM56. The ones we meet most are DM1 on high quality design, which introduces the Haringey Development Charter, DM12 on housing design and quality, DM13 on affordable housing and DM11 on housing mix. Employment land sits under DM37 and DM38.
Two London Plan Opportunity Areas cover the borough's growth. The Lee Valley OA, which includes Tottenham Hale and Northumberland Park, has indicative capacity for 21,000 homes and 13,000 jobs across all its boroughs. The Wood Green/Haringey Heartlands OA has capacity for 4,500 homes and 2,500 jobs by 2041. SD1, D9 on tall buildings, HC1 on heritage and E7 on industrial intensification are the London Plan policies most often in play.
Haringey charges its own Community Infrastructure Levy as well as the Mayoral CIL, with a revised charging schedule adopted on 14 March 2022 and rates indexed each year.
Policy areas that shape Haringey schemes
Conservation areas and listed buildings, applied with the relevant appraisal and any conservation area Article 4 on windows and doors.
Concentration, room standards and the effect on family housing, backed by the Article 4 Direction in the east.
Policy DM6 sets the approach to tall and taller buildings, which must pass design, townscape and location tests alongside London Plan D9.
Residential basements and lightwells, including their effect on neighbours, drainage and the character of the street.
A Consultancy That Works With You, For You
In Haringey the same proposal can be judged very differently depending on the ward. A C4 HMO that needs no permission in Muswell Hill needs a full application in Tottenham, and a warehouse unit may be protected employment land or a potential live-work space.
Advice is also useful while the New Local Plan moves to its submission stage, because site allocations for Wood Green and Tottenham are being redrawn and landowners have a limited window to comment.
RTPI Chartered
Led by a Chartered member of the Royal Town Planning Institute with more than ten years of public and private-sector planning experience.
Honest Prospects
A realistic view of the planning risks and options before you commit time or money.
Fixed, Transparent Fees
Fixed-fee quotations agreed before work starts, so you know the cost from the outset.
Direct Access
You deal with the Chartered Planner doing the work, not an account manager.
Planning Consultants Across London
We cover every council area in London. See our main London planning consultants page. If your application has been refused, see our Haringey planning appeal page.
Haringey Planning FAQs
Does the Haringey HMO Article 4 cover my street?
It applies across most of the east of the borough, including much of Tottenham. The boundary is shown on the council's Article 4 pages. If your house is inside it, a change from a family home to a small HMO needs planning permission as well as any licence.
What is warehouse living and where is it allowed?
It is a live-work arrangement in former industrial buildings that Haringey addresses through its own policy, DM39. The policy is tied to particular employment locations and conditions, so it is not a general route to turning industrial units into ordinary flats.
When will Haringey's New Local Plan be adopted?
Not before it has been examined. The first draft was consulted on in late 2025 and the submission version is programmed for the second half of 2026. Adoption depends on the Inspector's findings, so the four 2017 documents stay in force until then.
Can I split my Crouch End house into flats?
Possibly. Policy DM16 sets the tests, and the council looks closely at the loss of a family home, the mix of units and the quality of each flat. Our guide to converting a house into flats explains the usual issues.
What if Haringey has already refused my application?
An appeal to the Planning Inspectorate may be possible, or a revised scheme may address the refusal reasons. Our Haringey planning appeals page covers that route in more detail.
Do you cover the whole of Haringey?
Yes. We act on sites from Highgate and Fortis Green in the west to Northumberland Park and Tottenham Hale in the east, working from Norfolk and visiting where the project needs it.
Get a Free Quote
Tell us what you are trying to achieve and where the property or site is. We will give you an initial view and a fixed-fee quote.
Or email us at info@cedarplanning.co.uk with the relevant information.
Thinking about a Haringey HMO, conversion or extension? Book a free 15-minute call, or see our HMO planning service and Haringey appeals.