About the Ford Square and Sidney Square Conservation Area
The Ford Square and Sidney Square Conservation Area covers about 3.2 hectares within London Borough of Tower Hamlets’s area. Inside the boundary are 3 listed buildings, all Grade II. 1 Article 4 direction over the area removes further householder rights, on top of the conservation area limits below. 1 Tree Preservation Order record overlap the area; every other tree here still needs six weeks’ notice before work.
What changes inside the conservation area
Conservation areas are “Article 2(3) land”. You keep most permitted development rights, but these are removed or tightened.
- Rear extensionElsewhere: 3 m · 6 m with PANo 6 m / 8 m prior approval
- Two-storey extensionElsewhere: 3 mNeeds planning permission
- Side extensionElsewhere: Half the widthNeeds planning permission
- Loft conversionElsewhere: 50 m³Needs planning permission
- Garden roomElsewhere: 2.5 m high by boundariesNot beside the house
- PorchElsewhere: 3 m²Same limits
- Solar panelsElsewhere: 0.2 m projectionSame limits
- Air source heat pumpElsewhere: 1 unitNot facing the road
- Fences, walls and gatesElsewhere: 2 m · 1 m by a roadSame limits
- External claddingElsewhere: Matching materialsNeeds planning permission
- Tree workElsewhere: No notice6 weeks’ notice to the council
- Demolition (over 115 m³)Elsewhere: AllowedNeeds planning permission
Limits for a semi-detached house under the GPDO 2015. An Article 4 direction can remove more.
Article 4 directions here
These overlap the conservation area. Householder directions remove more of the rights above; change-of-use ones don’t affect extending a house.
- Whitechapel 2Householder works
Listed buildings in the conservation area
Any work affecting these needs listed building consent, inside or out. Each links to its entry on the National Heritage List.
- 1-9, Sidney Square E1Grade II
- 18-25, Sidney Square E1Grade II
- 84-98, Ashfield StreetGrade II
Nearby conservation areas
Boundary and listed buildings from London Borough of Tower Hamlets and Historic England via planning.data.gov.uk (OGL). Guidance only — not an official council check.