I think that there are a number of factors here. First and foremost the Council have been given a target by the Government for the building of new homes. Unfortunately, there aren't any national targets for things like preserving the character of the area, protecting existing open space and planning enforcement. This gives developers a big advantage even before the merits of any proposal are even discussed.

Perhaps this also explains why so many aspects of the local planning law which could be used to curb the worst excesses of the developers are given only lip service. Take the policy on backland and in-fill development for example (garden grabbing to you and me). This says that "the scheme must respect the character of the area, including the cumulative impact", "the scheme must be particularly sensitively designed" and "there should be no appreciable loss of privacy and amenity for adjoining houses and their back gardens". Is this policy applied in practice? I would say not. It is more a case of just how many houses can we squeeze into this site?

Another factor is that the Lewisham Planning Department appears to be chronically under resourced. The dismal record on planning enforcement is one of the inevitable results. I went to one meeting addressed by the Head of Planning who as much as admitted that they simply don't bother with certain breaches. It also means that when the planners are up against developers who can afford to hire the best planning consultants and planning lawyers they are simply outgunned.

Lack of resources does nothing for moral within an organisation and I wonder what the level of staff turnover is within the Planning Department. To apply policy in a consistent manner it helps to have a stable workforce.

The lack of funds also means that the Council can be reluctant to refuse a planning application in case the applicant appeals the decision to the Planning Inspectorate in Bristol. If the Council lose an appeal they can be ordered to pay the costs of the other side.

Moving on there is the role of the Planning Committee. If a planning application receives a certain number of objections it goes to the Planning Committee. This is made up of local Councillors and usually sits every other week on a Thursday night. From what I have been told attendance can be patchy concentrating power in the hands of those that do attend.