178a High Road, Leytonstone
Ref APP/U5930/W/23/3320424 178a High Road, Leytonstone (dismissed)
This appeal relates to the addition of a mansard-roof extension to a property with no heritage designation. (The revised NPPF provides that authorities should ‘allow mansard roof extensions on suitable properties’ where their external appearance ‘harmonises with the original building’.) The inspector found that the scheme would create a building much taller than its neighbours and, as such, would be very visible, altering the character of the area by the loss of an attractive Dutch-style gable.
This article originally appeared in the Institute of Historic Building Conservation’s (IHBC’s) Context 179, published in March 2024. It was written by Alexandra Fairclough, conservation officer for Cheshire East, a lecturer and a member of the IHBC legal panel. A former planning inspector, she was called to the Bar in 2009, and before that was IHBC law and practice coordinator.
--Institute of Historic Building Conservation
Related articles on Designing Buildings Conservation.
IHBC NewsBlog
UK Stained Glass Repository finds windows new homes
How are stained glass windows are rescued, stored and repurposed?
APPGEBE report sets high aims for quality
'Government must not sacrifice quality in drive to build 1.5m homes'
New measures protect Historic Shipwrecks from heritage crime
Underwater cultural heritage benefits from new HE guidance
How could the City of London skyline look in 6 years' time?
Visualisation shows approved planning applications as completed buildings
National Trust for Scotland calls for VAT cuts
Heritage neglect is encouraged by current policies
IHBC's 'Context' Issue 186 features Industrial Heritage
IHBC's members' journal reports on the challenges of conserving infrastructure.
Book now for IHBC Annual School 2026
IHBC Annual School is taking place 18-20 June 2026 in Newcastle.
RICHeS Research Infrastructure offers ‘Full Access Fund Call’
RICHeS offers a ‘Help’ webinar on 11 March
Latest IHBC Issue of Context features Roofing
Articles range from slate to pitched roofs, and carbon impact to solar generation to roofscapes.
Three reasons not to demolish Edinburgh’s Argyle House
Should 'Edinburgh's ugliest building' be saved?
IHBC’s 2025 Parliamentary Briefing...from Crafts in Crisis to Rubbish Retrofit
IHBC launches research-led ‘5 Commitments to Help Heritage Skills in Conservation’
How RDSAP 10.2 impacts EPC assessments in traditional buildings
Energy performance certificates (EPCs) tell us how energy efficient our buildings are, but the way these certificates are generated has changed.
















