Policy information sourced from the Islington Core Strategy

CS 15 Open space and green infrastructure

The council will provide inclusive spaces for residents and visitors, and create a greener borough by:

A) Protecting all existing local open spaces, including open spaces of heritage value, as well as incidental green space, trees and private gardens. Further policies will be identified in the Development Management Policies.

B) Improving the quality and function of open and green spaces for all users in accordance with the Green Space Assessment and Action Plan as well as the Inclusive Landscape Design Supplementary Planning Document.

C) Improving access to open space and maximising opportunities for further provision across the borough, but particularly in those areas that currently have little or no open space locally (identified in Map 3.10 - Open space priorities) by:

  • creating new open spaces on underused land such as the council’s housing land, under-used car parking areas, roads and other void spaces. Underused spaces which could be further explored for use as open space are identified in Map 3.11 below. Sites will be formally identified in other parts of the Local Development Framework
  • making better use of housing amenity space so that it can help to provide an open space function
  • creating and enhancing civic spaces
  • seeking on site, or financial contributions, towards open and civic spaces from new development - details will be set out in the Development Management Policies
  • better utilising the Regent’s Canal and the spaces around it
  • ensuring that existing and new open spaces are designed in an inclusive way, guided by the Inclusive Landscape Design SPD
  • creating and improving accessible links between open spaces in the borough, which encourage walking and promote cycling in line with Islington Cycling Action Plan.

D) Protecting and enhancing biodiversity across the borough and addressing deficiencies in access to nature. Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation (SINCs) will be protected in line with their hierarchical importance and improvements to their biodiversity value will be supported. SINCs will be identified and designated in the Development Management Policies. Other key habitats, and priority species within them, will also be protected and enhanced including:

  • built environment
  • canals, waterways and standing water (this includes ponds)
  • parks and urban green spaces
  • private gardens, community gardens, and allotments
  • railside land
  • school grounds
  • woodland
  • acid grassland
  • cemeteries
  • other habitats deemed important for London

Access to nature will be increased, including by improving the biodiversity value of the parks and gardens identified in Map 3.12. Further ways of increasing access to nature, along with other priorities for the protection and enhancement of habitats will be set out in the Biodiversity Action Plan.

E) Supporting local food production through the protection of existing food growing sites. Opportunities for new food growing spaces will be sought elsewhere including from new private developments.

F) Maximising opportunities to ‘green’ the borough through planting, green roofs, and green corridors to encourage and connect green spaces across the borough, identifying streets, sites and strategic development areas where greening measures could happen. These opportunities will be identified through the Climate Change Adaptation Strategy, and the Biodiversity Action Plan, before being brought together with other opportunities in an Open Space and Green Infrastructure Strategy.

G) Maximising the contribution of new and existing open spaces to broader sustainability objectives including SUDS, climate change adaptation and biodiversity. These opportunities will be set out in the aforementioned Open Space and Green Infrastructure Strategy.

H) Finally, Islington’s two identified Locally Important Geological Sites (LIGS) will be protected, managed and enhanced.

For more information please see the Core Strategy