Kingston Planning: 1.48 Years of Land, 20,000 Homes

Two numbers set the terms of every planning argument in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames. The council can demonstrate 1.48 years of deliverable housing land where national policy expects five. And its new Local Plan proposes nearly 20,000 homes by 2043, which is why the Green Belt is on the table for the first time.

There is also a deadline attached. The final consultation on that plan closes at 11.59pm on Friday 4 September 2026, and it is the last chance to make a formal representation before an inspector takes over.

The housing land supply position

Councils are expected to keep an identified five-year supply of deliverable housing sites. Kingston’s own position statement, published March 2025 and still the current one, puts the borough nowhere near it.

The chain runs like this. The London Plan sets Kingston a ten-year target of 9,640 homes between 2019/20 and 2028/29, an average of 964 a year. Between April 2019 and March 2024 the borough actually delivered 2,852 homes, leaving an accumulated shortfall of 1,968. Because the council’s Housing Delivery Test result is 48%, well under the 85% threshold, national policy adds a 20% buffer on top. That produces a five-year requirement of 8,146 homes.

Against that, the council can identify 2,407 deliverable homes. Divide one by the other and you get 1.48 years.

The practical consequence is that the presumption in favour of sustainable development bites. Where a council cannot show five years of supply, applications for housing are judged with a thumb on the scale in the applicant’s favour, which weakens the council’s hand at appeal. It is the single most important fact about planning in Kingston.

What is counted, and what is not

The supply figure is not a guess about the whole pipeline. The council also lists 1,550 homes as “deliverability uncertain”, and the sites it excluded explain where the borough’s housing has stalled:

• Eden Walk, Kingston town centre, 380 homes with full permission, excluded because construction has begun but “development progress has currently stalled”.
• Unilever Kingston, 156 homes with outline permission, excluded because the detailed residential application is still pending while the office element nears completion.
• Regents Wing, Kingston Hospital, 128 homes with full permission, excluded because construction has not started.

Sites that did count include 452 homes from phases 1A to 1C of the Cambridge Road Estate regeneration, which has full permission for 1,338 net additional homes overall, 292 homes at the former Surrey County Council County Hall, and 125 homes at Hawks Road Clinic, where work has begun.

The list is a fair summary of the borough’s problem: permissions exist, but a lot of them are not turning into homes. That shortage is part of why the typical Kingston home still sells for £553,350 while London prices fell 3.7% over the same year.

The new Local Plan, and the deadline

Kingston is writing a Local Plan to cover 2028 to 2043, and it is at the Regulation 19 stage, the last one before submission. Consultation opened on 6 July 2026 and closes at 11.59pm on 4 September 2026.

The council’s own summary says it is “planning for nearly 20,000 homes to be delivered over the next 15 years”. That is a materially higher rate than the London Plan’s 964 a year, and the plan is explicit about why the maths forces a change of approach:

Due to the insufficient supply of brownfield land, the Council must identify specific areas of Green Belt land for release.

Alongside Green Belt release, the plan proposes using “grey belt” sites, land that the council judges no longer meets Green Belt purposes, and specific brownfield sites inside Metropolitan Open Land. Both are significant departures for a borough where protecting open land has been settled policy.

Development is otherwise directed at Key Areas of Change, the metropolitan and district town centres, and locations with strong public transport. Tolworth town centre is identified as a Key Area of Change, with a proposal to extend the town centre boundary to take in Tolworth station, which the plan says would support new shops, leisure, offices and homes around it.

What the consultation responses so far have said

The council’s summary lists the themes it heard at the previous stage, and they are worth knowing before you write in:

• Concern that roads, schools and health services will not cope with the scale proposed.
• Disagreement about whether the level of development is justified given the uncertainty over Crossrail 2.
• Mixed views on using Green Belt and Metropolitan Open Land in the south of the borough.
• Requests for more genuinely affordable housing of mixed tenure, and more family-sized homes.
• Concern about the scale of student accommodation and large build-to-rent schemes.

On gypsy and traveller provision the council acknowledges “a significant backlog in unmet needs” and commits to supporting at least 52 permanent pitches over the ten years to 2031/32.

How to comment

Responses can go in through the Kingston Let’s Talk portal, by email to localplan@kingston.gov.uk, or by post to the Spatial Planning Team, Guildhall 2, High Street, Kingston upon Thames, KT1 1EU. Forms are available in borough libraries and the Information and Advice Centre.

At Regulation 19 the test is different from earlier rounds. Inspectors look at whether the plan is legally compliant and “sound”, so representations that engage with soundness carry more weight than expressions of preference.

What happens next

Until adoption the borough continues under the existing development plan: the London Plan, Kingston’s Core Strategy and the Kingston Town Centre Area Action Plan. That means the 1.48-year supply position governs decisions for at least another two years.

Checking an application near you

Kingston runs its planning register on Idox Public Access at publicaccess.kingston.gov.uk. The weekly list is the useful view: it shows everything validated in the past week, and it can be filtered by ward or by one of the four parish areas, Kingston and North Kingston, New and Old Malden, South of the Borough, and Surbiton.

Comments on a live application go through the council’s comment page. Neighbour consultation periods are usually 21 days from the date on the letter, so a scheme you hear about at the pub may already be past its window.

Frequently asked questions

How many homes does Kingston’s new Local Plan propose?

Nearly 20,000 homes over the 15 years from 2028 to 2043, according to the council’s own summary of the publication draft.

When does the Kingston Local Plan consultation close?

11.59pm on Friday 4 September 2026. It is the Regulation 19 stage, the final consultation before the plan is submitted to the Planning Inspectorate in December 2026.

Does Kingston have a five-year housing land supply?

No. The council’s March 2025 position statement puts the borough at 1.48 years, against a requirement of 8,146 homes and a deliverable supply of 2,407.

What is Kingston’s Housing Delivery Test result?

48%, from the 2023 measurement published in December 2024. Anything below 85% triggers a 20% buffer on the five-year land supply requirement.

Is Kingston releasing Green Belt land for housing?

The publication draft plan proposes releasing specific Green Belt sites identified as “grey belt”, plus brownfield sites within Metropolitan Open Land, on the grounds that there is not enough urban brownfield land to meet the requirement.

How do I find planning applications in Kingston?

Through the council’s Idox register at publicaccess.kingston.gov.uk. The weekly list can be filtered by ward.

Sources

• Housing Delivery Test and Five-Year Housing Land Supply Position Statement, March 2025 for the 1.48-year position, the 48% test result, the 964-home annual requirement and the named excluded and included sites.
• Kingston Local Plan summary, publication version (Regulation 19) for the 20,000-home figure, the Green Belt and grey belt approach, and the consultation themes.
• Local Plan, Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames for the plan period, consultation dates, submission date and expected adoption.
• Kingston Let’s Talk, Local Plan Regulation 19 consultation for how to respond.
• Kingston Public Access planning register for individual applications and the weekly list.

Planning positions change as sites come forward and statements are updated. Check the council’s own documents before relying on a figure.