Cllr Simon McGrath writes to residents in the Apostles Roads in Raynes Park:

“I am writing to let you know  that at last night’s Merton Council Meeting the Lib Dem councillors successfully proposed an amendment to the Council’s new planning rules (the Local Plan) to give the Planning Applications Committee and planning officers more power to deal with inappropriate developments, and in particular the conversion of two bedroom houses in the Apostles into tiny flats.

“You may recall from the last edition of the Apostles Residents Association Newsletter the concern that the Planning Applications Committee don’t have the power to turn down house conversions into really tiny flats, and our amendment is intended to give the Committee more power.

The change we proposed was: That within the Local Plan: RAYNES PARK: POLICY N3.4(M) should be amended to read:

“Ensuring new homes are of a high design quality and support housing choice by requiring development to comply with the most appropriate minimum space standards (particularly in the case of dwelling conversions), and that all development respects local character, heritage and amenity in surrounding residential neighbourhoods”

The draft Local Plan now has to go for a statutory 6 week inspection and then goes to a Government Planning Inspector so it will take a bit of time before it comes into effect.”