020 8004 4464Discuss your project

CASE STUDY · APPROVED

Ground-floor office converted to a two-bedroom flat

Westminster Bridge Road, Southwark · London Borough of Southwark

Conversion of a ground-floor office unit (Class E(g)(i)) in the building into a two-bedroom, three-person flat (Class C3), with a rear amenity space holding bin and weatherproof cycle storage and no change to the external walls or windows. Following pre-application advice, we prepared the planning, design and access statement, the daylight and sunlight report and the flood risk assessment.

The existing rear elevation of the building at ground floor, with arched openings (Design and Access Statement site photographs)
The existing rear elevation of the building at ground floor, with arched openings (Design and Access Statement site photographs)

The site

The unit is on the ground floor of the building at Westminster Bridge Road, a five-storey brick building on the corner of Dibden Row and Gerridge Street, in an area of mixed residential and office uses. The DAS planning criteria record no conservation area, listed building or tree preservation order, and a PTAL of 6b. Lambeth North, Southwark and Waterloo stations are within walking distance. The site is in Flood Zone 3a.

The challenge

The building has a long planning history, including refused applications for residential conversion of other units, so the unit had to meet housing standards in full within the existing envelope. Pre-application advice (22/EQ/0184) was supportive but asked for private amenity space and a daylight and sunlight assessment to show that the ground-floor habitable rooms meet BRE internal daylight standards. The Flood Zone 3a location also required a flood risk assessment.

What was submitted

  1. Planning, Design and Access StatementShowed a 69.6 sqm two-bedroom, three-person flat against the 61 sqm minimum, with a 31.9 sqm living/kitchen/dining room, a 12.2 sqm double bedroom with en-suite, an 8.4 sqm single bedroom and 2.2 sqm of built-in storage. All changes are internal apart from the new amenity space with bin and cycle storage, and the scheme is car-free given the PTAL 6b location.
  2. Sunlight and Daylight Report (BRE guidance, ADF)IES VE modelling gave Average Daylight Factors of 2.3% for the kitchen/living/dining room and 3.3% and 5.5% for the bedrooms, all above the stated targets (kitchen 2.0, living room 1.5, bedroom 1.0). The report notes that the paved rear amenity space does not receive two hours of sun on 21 March, and that there is no impact on neighbours because the external envelope is unchanged.
  3. Flood Risk AssessmentConfirmed Flood Zone 3a, with very low surface water risk and groundwater and reservoir flooding unlikely. It recommended flood-resilient measures, including raised services, sealed service entries, closed-cell insulation and water-resistant fittings, and concluded that the conversion would not increase surface water discharge or flood risk elsewhere.

Outcome

Approved by the London Borough of Southwark on 4 December 2025.

From the reports

Side elevation of the building building (Design and Access Statement site photographs)
Side elevation of the building building (Design and Access Statement site photographs)
Average Daylight Factor analysis of the proposed ground-floor flat, with results for each habitable room (Sunlight / Daylight Report)
Average Daylight Factor analysis of the proposed ground-floor flat, with results for each habitable room (Sunlight / Daylight Report)

Images and findings are taken from the documents submitted with the planning application. The full application is available on the council's planning register.

YOUR NEXT STEP

Planning something similar?

Tell us about the site and what you want to achieve. We will tell you which reports the council is likely to need and what they should cost.

Call 020 8004 4464 or email info@greencodeconsultants.com.

Make an enquiry