Audit adopted 1 December 2005Read the Soho and Chinatown Conservation Area Audit
Westminster first designated the Soho conservation area in 1969 and extended it in 1976, 1979, 1983, 1990 and 2005. In 2005 the area was split, and its southern part was re-designated as the Chinatown conservation area on 6 September 2005, bounded by Shaftesbury Avenue, Charing Cross Road, Lisle and Coventry Streets and Rupert Street. The council adopted the joint Soho and Chinatown Conservation Area Audit as Supplementary Planning Guidance on 1 December 2005.
Soho and Chinatown Conservation Area Audit, adopted 1 December 2005 · Westminster’s conservation areas: character summaries and overview · Westminster: conservation area audits, maps and guidance L–Z · Westminster: conservation area audits, maps and guidance A–K
The audit’s policy references predate the current framework, and the council says adopted audits should be read alongside its adopted policies; City Plan Policy 45E is now the roof policy. Paragraph 24.11 of the City Plan still has Soho proposals assessed against the audit, which finds that many unlisted Georgian buildings already have mansards, so upward extension of many buildings is unlikely to be acceptable. Its roof map, Figure 21, rests on a 2004 street-level survey.
Soho and Chinatown Conservation Area Audit, adopted 1 December 2005 · Westminster: conservation area audits, maps and guidance L–Z · City Plan 2019–2040 (2026), adopted 21 January 2026
Basement direction in force 31 July 2016Check which Article 4 directions reach the address
Since 31 July 2016 one Article 4 direction, confirmed on 4 July 2016 after being made on 22 July 2015, has covered the whole City of Westminster. It takes away the householder right to build basements, lightwells or anything else beneath a house or its curtilage, so at a Soho house that kind of work cannot proceed under permitted development.
Westminster: Article 4 directions and address map · Westminster: city-wide basement Article 4 direction, confirmed July 2016
Westminster’s other directions cover changing commercial, business and service premises into homes in parts of the city, checked by address; in Soho they could matter if a ground-floor shop were to become a flat, but not for work inside an existing home. The council’s minor-alteration directions with a stated address all lie outside Soho. Listing, the conservation area and the lease still bind you whatever the Article 4 position, and flats have no householder rights in the first place.
Westminster: Article 4 directions and address map · Westminster: permitted development rights · Historic England: listed-building consent · LEASE: alterations and home improvements
City Plan 2026; Soho plan made 8 October 2021Apply City Plan Policy 24 and the Soho Neighbourhood Plan
Soho’s development plan combines the City Plan 2019–2040 (2026), in force since its adoption on 21 January 2026, the London Plan and the made Soho Neighbourhood Plan; a New City Plan, announced in July 2026, is emerging only. Policy 24, the Soho Special Policy Area, asks development to respect the existing scale and grain and the unique mixture of uses, protects the scale and setting of Soho Square and Golden Square, and considers noise and amenity carefully, especially where homes occupy upper floors.
Westminster: adopted planning policies and made neighbourhood plans · City Plan 2019–2040 (2026), adopted 21 January 2026 · Westminster: New City Plan (emerging, not adopted) · Westminster: Soho Neighbourhood Plan, made 8 October 2021
Following a referendum on 2 September 2021, the Soho Neighbourhood Plan 2019–2040 was made on 8 October 2021 and now forms part of the statutory Development Plan. Policy 1 supports proposals that respect the conservation area’s character, particularly in size and scale, and protects rear yards, courts, back streets and mews. Policy 16 expects new homes to meet the City Plan space standards, and Policy 21 supports adaptations to heritage assets that safeguard their historic characteristics.
Westminster: Soho Neighbourhood Plan, made 8 October 2021 · Soho Neighbourhood Plan 2019–2040 · Westminster: adopted planning policies and made neighbourhood plans
The Oxford Street Development Corporation became the planning authority for its area along Oxford Street on 10 August 2026. Westminster’s FAQ says planning decisions, pre-application advice and planning enforcement for sites in that area now rest with the corporation rather than the council, so if your home is near Oxford Street, check the published boundary map before preparing an application.
The Oxford Street Development Corporation (Functions) Order 2026 · Westminster: transfer of planning powers to the Oxford Street Development Corporation, FAQs · Oxford Street Development Corporation area boundary map
Policy 50; construction code May 2026Keep a lower-ground refit apart from new basement space
A new bathroom fitted inside an existing basement, such as those recorded beneath the Meard Street terraces, raises different questions from lowering the floor or digging out. Where new basement space is proposed, Policy 50 looks for no more than one storey below the lowest original floor, at least 1 m of soil above and no more than 1.8 m of encroachment under the highway; proposals affecting the TfL road network, which takes in Oxford Street, should seek TfL’s advice.
Historic England: 1 to 7 Meard Street, Grade II* · Historic England: 13 to 21 Meard Street, Grade II* · City Plan 2019–2040 (2026), adopted 21 January 2026 · TfL: highway licences on red routes
Under Policy 50, a basement in a listed building must not unbalance the original hierarchy of spaces. The May 2026 Code of Construction Practice classes every new or extended basement, whatever its size, as Level 3, which requires a Construction Management Plan. Historic England’s 2017 appraisal puts Soho, between Regent Street, Shaftesbury Avenue, Charing Cross Road and Oxford Street, in a Tier 2 archaeological priority area, and groundwork applications there need a desk-based assessment.
City Plan 2019–2040 (2026), adopted 21 January 2026 · Westminster Code of Construction Practice, May 2026 · Historic England: City of Westminster Archaeological Priority Areas appraisal, March 2017
Before ordering sashes, re-covering a roof or committing to any excavation at a Soho address, confirm the consent route and, near Oxford Street, which body is the planning authority. Planning permission, listed building consent, conservation-area controls, the basement Article 4 direction, the Building Regulations, the landlord’s rights under the lease and Party Wall procedures each operate independently; clearing one leaves the rest outstanding, and audit guidance is not a decision.
