Building Compliance in Newham

Newham’s November 2024 landlord guide identifies Royal Victoria and Stratford Olympic Park as excluded wards from its designation, with Stratford among the included wards. Do not confuse Stratford with Stratford Olympic Park when checking a rental address. The guide describes selective licensing for privately rented homes outside mandatory or additional HMO licensing, subject to exemptions. Establish the ward and occupancy before choosing the application route.

The Newham guide describes mandatory HMO licensing for five or more people in two or more households, and additional licensing for three to four people forming two or more households where facilities are shared or occupation is not exclusive. It also separates HMO planning use from licensing. A licence review therefore needs the actual household arrangement, not just the number of bedrooms on a letting advertisement.

Newham’s licensing application page requires changes to be reported when occupancy or household numbers change. Review the property evidence at the same time: fire risk assessments, EPCs and legionella risk assessments address different risks. Their relevance depends on the building and letting arrangement; this is not a claim that every Newham licence requires all three reports.

The adoption statement dates adoption of the Newham Local Plan to 2 November 2026. In Part 1, Policy CE2, new residential units have a space-heating demand target below 20 kWh/m² GIA/year and an energy-use intensity ceiling of 35 kWh/m² GIA/year. It also rules out new gas-grid connections. Commission energy statements while fabric and heating choices can still change; a carbon-percentage summary alone does not address these demand metrics.

Policy CE1 sets residential water consumption at 105 litres or less per person per day and seeks an excellent Wat 01 rating for non-residential development. Use water calculations to test the fittings schedule before procurement. The same plan’s CE3 addresses embodied carbon and circular construction, so a sustainability statement should distinguish operational energy from material retention and reuse.

Policy CE4 requires the Good Homes Alliance early-stage risk tool for all new residential units, with modelling where the score exceeds eight. Major residential applications need dynamic thermal modelling. Its implementation text identifies TM59 with Approved Document O limitations. Start TM59 overheating assessments before fixing glazing and opening areas, and reconcile ventilation assumptions with noise constraints rather than assuming every bedroom window can remain open.

Newham states that its Local Plan and the London Plan together form the development plan. Read the local demand, water and overheating policies alongside the London Plan 2021, not as a substitute for it. Our London Plan energy assessments can organise the regional and borough evidence into a single design narrative while keeping the different tests visible.