What planning rules in Greenwich catch homeowners out?

Greenwich looks straightforward on a map. But underneath the postcode, there are layers of planning rules that vary street by street — and sometimes property by property. Most homeowners assume their project is fine until they're told it isn't. WhatCanIBuild exists precisely for that gap between assuming and knowing.

The World Heritage Site buffer zone changes things

Maritime Greenwich is a UNESCO World Heritage Site — and that designation doesn't stop at the boundary. There's a buffer zone around it, and properties within or near that zone face additional planning scrutiny that simply doesn't apply elsewhere in London. The problem is that most homeowners don't realise their property falls within it until they've already started planning a project.

What does that actually mean for your extension, outbuilding, or loft conversion? It depends on your property. The same project that sails through in SE9 might face a very different outcome in SE10.

Conservation areas don't work the way people think

Greenwich has multiple conservation areas — and being in one changes what you can do without permission in ways that aren't obvious. But here's what catches people out: even knowing you're in a conservation area doesn't tell you what that means for your specific project on your specific house.

The character of each conservation area is different. What's been approved on one street may have been refused on the next. Most homeowners don't realise that the history of decisions near them is often the strongest signal of what's likely to happen — and that's not something you can easily piece together yourself.

Permitted development isn't a blanket permission

One of the most common misconceptions is that permitted development rights are universal. They're not. They're the starting point — not the answer. Rights can be restricted or removed at the local level, and whether a specific project qualifies depends on the property type, its history, its location, and sometimes decisions made about it years before you bought it.

Flats and maisonettes have different rights to houses. Properties created through certain planning permissions carry restrictions that follow the building, not the owner. And if your home has had previous extensions, that affects what you can still do.

The honest answer to "does my project need permission?" in Greenwich is almost always: it depends on your property.

What most homeowners miss

The best way to understand your real position isn't to look up general rules — it's to see what's actually been approved and refused for similar projects near you, on streets like yours, for houses like yours. That's the information that tells you whether your project is routine or likely to face resistance.

WhatCanIBuild shows you exactly that — what's been approved nearby, how projects like yours have fared, and what your property's specific combination of constraints actually means in practice. Not the general rules. Your situation.

If you're planning anything in Greenwich — an extension, a loft, a garden building — the best way to avoid a costly assumption is to check before you commit.

WhatCanIBuild gives you a clear picture based on your address, not a generic answer based on borough-wide rules.