Windows – replacement of 3 existing single glazed timber windows with uPVC double glazed windows. Front door – replacement of existing 1920s timber glazed panelled front door with a like for like new 1920s timber panel glazed door. Fire place – replace existing gas fire place with a wood burning stove, installation of a new flue liner and chimney pot

Appeal Decision Site visit made on 16 June 2026 by N McGurk BSc (Hons) MCD MBA MRTPI an Inspector appointed by the Secretary of State Decision date: 02 July 2026 Appeal Ref: 6008708 24 Parkstead Road, Wandsworth, London, SW15 5AP • The appeal is made under section 78 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (as amended) against a refusal to grant planning permission. • The appeal is made by Lilian Nyaga against the decision of the Council of the London Borough of Wandsworth. • The application Ref is 2025/3760. • The development proposed is windows – replacement of 3 existing single glazed timber windows with uPVC double glazed windows. Front door – replacement of existing 1920s timber glazed panelled front door with a like for like new 1920s timber panel glazed door. Fire place – replace existing gas fire place with a wood burning stove, installation of a new flue liner and chimney pot. Certified flue sweep prior to installations. Decision 1. The appeal is allowed and planning permission is granted for windows – replacement of 3 existing single glazed timber windows with uPVC double glazed windows. Front door – replacement of existing 1920s timber glazed panelled front door with a like for like new 1920s timber panel glazed door. Fire place – replace existing gas fire place with a wood burning stove, installation of a new flue liner and chimney pot. Certified flue sweep prior to installations at 24 Parkstead Road, Wandsworth, London, SW15 5AP in accordance with the terms of the application, Ref 2025/3760 and the plans submitted with it. Procedural Matters 2. Development the subject of this appeal is retrospective and is referred to below as the development (as opposed to the proposed development). 3. The Council emailed the appellant on 24 April 2026 requesting that the windows the subject of this appeal be removed and replaced within two months of the date of the email; and within seven days of the date of the email, requested that the appellant should confirm that the works would be carried out. This communication from the Council referred to the Council’s enforcement powers, to obtaining a court injunction and to prosecution for non-compliance. It did not comprise a formal enforcement notice. Main Issue 4. The main issue in this case is the effect of the development on the character and appearance of the Dover House Estate Conservation Area. Appeal Decision 6008708 2 Reasons 5. The appeal property comprises a small, cottage-style, brick-built, mid-terrace dwelling. It has a steep tiled roof and to its front elevation, ornate curved brickwork forms an attractive entrance, with the front door set back behind a porch. There is a small box dormer to the front at roof level, with a window below it, at ground level. 6. The surrounding area is residential and largely characterised by the presence of terraces of brick-built dwellings, with tiled roofs. Dwellings tend to be two stories in height although many, like the appeal dwelling, have steep tiled roofs with small dormers, providing for rooms at first floor level. 7. The appeal property is located within the Dover House Estate Conservation Area (CA), the special character of which is derived from the carefully planned clusters of picturesque cottage-style homes and their front gardens with privet hedges set around green spaces and mature trees. 8. The common use of similar brick and tile materials combines with the cottage-style design of dwellings and the planned, rhythmic layout of houses and streets, to provide for an attractive sense of uniformity. 9. During my site visit, I observed the significance of the CA’s gardens, hedges, green spaces and mature trees. In addition to providing for a green and spacious environment, they serve to ensure that the cottage-style dwellings appear “nestled” into their setting. This characteristic is especially noticeable in respect of the terrace within which the appeal dwelling is located, as well as in respect of the terrace on the opposite side of Parkstead Road. Here, the presence of trees, gardens and thick, tall privet hedges appear as dominant features and the height and thickness of the privet hedges partly obscures views of ground floor windows from the public domain. 10. Further to the above, I also noted during my site visit that it is the brickwork, the tiled roofs and the over-arching design of dwellings along Parkstead Road that appears most visually striking. Whilst the presence of small box dormers forms part of this overall design, the glazing within them, and that of ground floor windows, is not a particularly significant or noticeable feature – albeit, it is very apparent that a wide and varied range of types of glazing is characteristic of this part of the CA. 11. During my site visit, I observed a very broad mix of various forms of modern and traditional glazing to the front and rear of dwellings along Parkstead Road, including: double glazing and single glazing; wooden frames, Crittal frames and various forms of uPVC frames, including thin bars, thick bars, bowed designs and flat designs. Whilst most forms of glazing could be described as “cottage-style,” this variety in detail means that the glazing present in this part of Parkstead Road does not make a significant contribution to the special character of the CA. 12. Like neighbouring dwellings, the appeal dwelling sits behind a thick privet hedge and its ground floor window is partly obscured from public view. Whilst possible to observe its upper rear windows from the public domain, these are off-set from the street at an angle and can only be seen obliquely, from a considerable distance, amongst a wide range of types of neighbouring windows. 13. The replacement windows appear cottage-style. As such and noting the local characteristics described above, they do not appear out of keeping with their Appeal Decision 6008708 3 surroundings, but rather they blend-in and appear entirely in context with the character of neighbouring windows. 14. Further to the above, I observed during my site visit that the presence of tall brick chimneys make a positive contribution to the CA’s roofscape. Whilst there are numerous modern protrusions and additions visible across the area’s roofscape, including sky-lights, flues, vents, tv aerials, satellite dishes and chimney cowls, it is the height and prominence of the tall, brick chimneys that dominate and contribute positively to the CA’s significance. 15. During my site visit, I observed there to be a wide range of chimney cowls visible. I noted that these appear as common, somewhat prosaic features that do not draw attention to themselves nor significantly detract from the CA’s special qualities. The proposed development would include a flue chimney cowl. This would not in any way be unusual and the appellant has provided an image of the proposed cowl. There is no substantive evidence to support the Council’s contention that a chimney cowl would fail to preserve the significance of the CA. 16. Taking all of the above into account, I find that the development preserves the character and appearance of the Dover House Estate Conservation Area and is not contrary to the National Planning Policy Framework; to London Plan (2021) Policies HC1 and D6; to Wandsworth Local Plan (2023) Policies LP1, LP3 and LP5; to the Council’s Housing Supplementary Planning Document (2016); or to the Dover House Estate Conservation Area Appraisal, which together amongst other things, seek to protect local character. Conclusion 17. For the reasons given above, the appeal succeeds. N McGurk INSPECTOR