City Temple 31 Holborn Viaduct London EC1A 2DE Data via plota.co.uk

Decided 25/00964/FULL
Date received
22 Jul 2025
Date validated
11 Aug 2025
Postcode
EC1A 2DE

Description

Change of use of the City Temple basement, lower ground and extended mezzanine floor, to provide uses within Flexible Class E/F1 with associated new and altered windows, entrances doors/canopies, and other incidental works. Data via plota.co.uk

Last checked

Site constraints 11

11 listed buildings within 150 m of the postcode pin
Nearest: The City Temple, Grade II, the postcode pin is inside its outline · 1 Grade I, 9 Grade II
The site itself is not listed. Listed building consent is needed for work that affects the special interest of a listed building, inside or out, on top of planning permission. Setting can be a consideration for buildings nearby; there is no fixed radius.
Show all 11 with distances
Historic England ↗
Protected view corridor: 4A.1 Primrose Hill summit to St Paul's Cathedral
Inside the landmark viewing corridor of a protected vista. A building that rises above the corridor's threshold height should be refused. How high that is depends on where along the view the site is. Also in the wider setting of 5A.2 Greenwich Park Wolfe statue to St Paul's Cathedral; 6A.1 Blackheath Point to St Paul's Cathedral.
The London Plan (policy HC4) designates strategic views, and the Mayor's London View Management Framework (March 2012) gives 13 of them a protected vista toward St Paul's Cathedral, the Palace of Westminster or the Tower of London. A vista has a threshold height that rises or falls with the line of sight. In the landmark viewing corridor, a building above it would harm the view and should be refused. In the wider setting consultation area around the corridor, a building above it is referred for consultation and its effect on the view is judged. The threshold changes along each view and is set out in the framework. A revised framework is out for consultation until 4 December 2026 and is not yet in force.
London View Management Framework ↗
Archaeological priority area
An assessment or field evaluation may be asked for before ground works.
The council or Historic England considers archaeology likely here. A desk-based assessment, and sometimes trial trenching, can be asked for with the application.
Air quality management area: City of London AQMA
The council has declared the area as failing an air quality objective.
Schemes that add traffic, parking or combustion plant are assessed against the area's action plan and may need an air quality assessment.
Council record ↗
National infrastructure project about 339 m away: Thames Tideway Tunnel
The site is about 339 m from the project boundary. Waste water treatment, decided. The project page says whether consent was granted. Also within 2 km: London Strategic Heat Main Project (at pre-application, about 676 m).
Nationally significant infrastructure projects (power stations, electricity lines, pipelines, major roads and railways, harbours, airports and reservoirs) are consented by a Secretary of State under the Planning Act 2008, after an examination by the Planning Inspectorate, rather than by the council. The boundary is the one the Inspectorate consults on and can change as the scheme does. Projects are shown within 2 km of the site.
Planning Inspectorate project page ↗
Central activities zone
The core of central London in the London Plan.
Offices, culture and the other strategic functions of the centre take priority over new housing here.
Also on the record
Scheduled monument about 249 m away: Barnard's Inn Hall (Mercers' School); Conservation area about 80 m away: Smithfield; Inside the City and County of the City of London built-up area; Public transport access: PTAL 6b (excellent), TfL 2023, for the 100 m square; Designated open space about 21 m away.
Not affected
Outside flood zones 2 and 3 · Not green belt

Checked on 2 November 2026. The pin for this application is the centre of its postcode rather than the building, so distances to nearby designations are measured from the postcode and can be out by the width of the postcode area. Historic England, the Environment Agency, Natural England, the Planning Inspectorate, Transport for London (public transport access levels, Powered by TfL Open Data, OGL v3.0, contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2025) and council datasets, Open Government Licence. A boundary can run through a site and the council holds the definitive record: confirm with the council before relying on this.

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About Plota's data service
City of London
Planning Authority Score
6.7/10
Good
#71 of 296 councils
Relevant to this application:
Change of use

City of London is one of the fastest councils in England for householder decisions, ranking #1 out of 296. The council extends the time limit on 84% of applications - one of the highest rates in England. Expect your application to take longer than the standard deadline. Householder applications are more likely to be approved here than most councils, with a 100% approval rate vs 90% nationally.

Among the fastest councils in England
for householder decisions
These figures are council-wide context, not a prediction for this application. View full council performance
City of London decision statistics
Based on MHCLG data, the year to March 2026
97%
Overall approval rate
Above avg (87%) #3 of 296
100%
Householder approved
Above avg (90%) #1 of 296
100%
Decided in 8 weeks
Above avg (63%) #1 of 296
84%
Extended time limit
Above avg (41%) #296 of 296
50%
Minor dwellings approved
4 decided (1-9 homes)
91%
Change of use approved
22 decided
460
Total decisions
14 refused in the year to March 2026