Policy information sourced from the Merton Core Planning Strategy.

CS14 Design

All development needs to be designed in order to respect, reinforce and enhance the local character of the area in which it is located and to contribute to Merton’s sense of place and identity. We will achieve this by:

  • Conserving and enhancing Merton’s heritage assets and wider historic environment particularly the valued centres, suburban neighbourhoods, industrial heritage and iconic green spaces, through conservation areas, statutory and locally listed buildings, scheduled ancient monuments, historic parks and gardens and archaeological sites and other non-designated heritage assets;
  • Promoting high quality sustainable design that:
    • meets urban design and climate change objectives;
    • responds to the ‘distinctive areas of the borough’;
    • improves Merton’s overall design standard;
    • responds to heritage assets and the wider historic environment to enhance local character and distinctiveness;
    • retains and adapts existing buildings where appropriate to reduce CO2 emissions and secure sustainable development;
    • provides functional spaces and buildings with adequate internal amenity;
    • enhances community safety.
  • Protecting the valued and distinctive suburban character of the borough by resisting the development of tall buildings where they will have a detrimental impact on this character. Tall buildings may therefore only be appropriate in the town centres of Colliers Wood, Morden and Wimbledon, where consistent with the tall buildings guidance in the justification supporting sub-area policies, where of exceptional design and architectural quality, where they do not cause harm to the townscape and significance of heritage assets and the wider historic environment, and where they will bring benefits towards regeneration and the public realm. Even with the identified centres, some areas are sensitive to tall buildings.
  • Encouraging well designed housing in the borough:
    • by ensuring that all residential development complies with the most appropriate minimum space standards;
    • by requiring existing single dwellings that are converted into two or more smaller units of accommodation to:
      • incorporate the re-provision of at least one family sized unit where resulting in the loss of an existing family sized unit;
      • comply with the most appropriate minimum space standards;
      • not result in an adverse impact on the suburban characteristics of the streetscape.
  • Requiring the development and improvement of the public realm to be accessible, inclusive and safe, simplified in design and unified by Merton’s green character to create an environment of real quality.
  • Using objectives, proposals and policies within national, regional and local policy, including local guidance or evidence such as design guides, character appraisals and management plans to shape new built form and enhance the overall design quality of the borough.

For more information, please see the Core Planning Strategy.