Three schemes carried over from 7 October go to councillors on 28 October, each with 14+ objections. From 31 October that alone won't send them to committee.

Sutton’s Planning Committee has added an extra meeting on Wednesday 28 October at 7pm to decide three applications it did not reach on 7 October. Officers recommend approving all three (agenda).

Each one is going to councillors for the same reason. The reports say each “received over 10 letters of objection, contrary to officers recommendation”. Three days later, on 31 October, national rules remove that route to committee altogether.

What is on the agenda

Application Where What is proposed Objections
DM2026/00471 5 Latimer Close, Worcester Park KT4 8UF Knock down a bungalow and build two semi-detached three-bedroom bungalows 14, from 14 households
DM2026/00623 Former burial ground, Carters Close, Worcester Park KT4 8QF A three-storey block of eight flats 23, from 23 households
DM2026/00676 16 Onslow Gardens, Wallington SM6 9QN Turn a six-bedroom shared house into a 10-bedroom one 29 letters, from 21 households

The officers’ reports for all three are word for word the reports written for 7 October. We covered two of them then: the eight flats on the former convent burial ground and the 10-bed shared house in Onslow Gardens. The council has not yet published the minutes of the 7 October meeting.

5 Latimer Close: second try at a bigger site

Latimer Close is a small cul-de-sac of bungalows off St Clair Drive, in Worcester Park South ward. The plan is to demolish number 5 and build a pair of semi-detached bungalows in its place (officers’ report).

The new building would be about 11.7 metres wide, 16.3 metres deep and 6 metres high. It includes:

  • two homes, each with three bedrooms
  • parking in the front garden
  • cycle stores in the rear gardens
  • solar panels on the rear roof

The site has been refused before. In August 2022 the council refused a plan to build a second bungalow on the plot. A planning inspector dismissed the appeal on 23 August 2023, finding it would harm the character of the area. The inspector did not find it would harm the neighbours at numbers 4 and 6.

The 14 objections cover:

  • design: overdevelopment, back garden development and a precedent for the close
  • neighbours: loss of light, overbearing presence, overlooking and noise
  • parking: a narrow road and small turning circle that cannot take another home, and risk to pedestrians and school pupils
  • other: flood risk, drainage and the loss of garden wildlife

Officers say the new scheme gives “better-designed, higher quality housing suitable for families” and would not cause undue harm to neighbours or parking. The site has a public transport rating of 1a, the lowest there is.

Why this meeting matters

Until now, an application in Sutton that drew more than 10 objections against an officer’s recommendation went to the Planning Committee. All three on 28 October are there because of that rule.

From 31 October, the national regulations (SI 2026/854) say an officer must decide schemes of one to nine homes. That covers Latimer Close. The eight Carters Close flats are also within the one-to-nine range, although the rules also depend on site area, which the report does not give. Other applications go to an officer unless a nominated councillor and a nominated officer both agree they are significant. There is no trigger based on objections. We explain the new rules in our report on the 31 October changes.

The committee is next due to meet on 4 November, the first meeting under the new rules.

What it means for you

If you live near any of the three sites, this is the meeting where councillors can still go against the officers.

  • Speaking: a Sutton resident can speak for up to four minutes on an application on the agenda. Tell Committee Services by midday on 28 October, on 020 8770 4990 or committee.services@sutton.gov.uk. If several people object to the same scheme, they will be asked to choose one speaker.
  • Where: the Civic Offices, St Nicholas Way, Sutton SM1 1EA.
  • Watching: the council records its committee meetings and publishes them on its website.

Councillors who disagree with an officer have to give planning reasons. Our Sutton planning applications page explains how to follow an application on your street.

Sources