Lambeth carries one of London's most concentrated new tower clusters, with the Nine Elms regeneration along the Thames between Vauxhall and Battersea bringing dozens of high-rise residential and mixed-use schemes through planning over recent years. Alongside this, the London Borough of Lambeth reviews a steady caseload of South Bank and Waterloo redevelopment, conservation-area work across Brixton, Clapham, and Kennington, and residential intensification across Streatham, Stockwell, and West Norwood. Daylight and sunlight assessments come up regularly across this full mix.
Our team prepares these reports under RICS regulation from our London office at Boundary Row, SE1, with BRE 209 (2022) as the working reference. For larger developments that could affect a neighbour's legal entitlement to light, rights of light assessments sit alongside the planning piece, particularly on the Nine Elms and Vauxhall schemes. The practice has been delivering daylight and sunlight reports since 2004.
Using the knowledge we have gained throughout our involvement in projects of differing size and complexities, we are able to apply the criteria within the BRE guidelines and produce comprehensive reports to accompany a planning application.
When assessing daylight and sunlight, we work with a professional team to try and achieve the best outcome for a site, whilst respecting the neighbouring properties’ access to daylight and sunlight. We will also provide advice on how the design of potential residential accommodation can ensure access to good levels of daylight and sunlight.
Each Lambeth report starts with the proposed scheme drawings and an initial site appraisal that grounds the analysis in the existing context. A 3D model then captures the development and the affected neighbouring properties, before running against BRE 209 (2022) methodology covering daylight, sunlight, and overshadowing as the scheme requires.
Vertical Sky Component covers light to windows. Annual Probable Sunlight Hours covers sunlight to habitable rooms with relevant orientation. Overshadowing analysis on amenity tests the 21 March sun position recommended in the guidance. No Sky Line and sunpath studies sit alongside where geometry or seasonal access matter, with the Nine Elms tower cluster requiring particular attention to cumulative effects.
The report sets out methodology, figures, and design rationale where the numbers run below BRE 209 reference values. Typical turnaround is 2 to 3 weeks from instruction. A free initial assessment confirms scope before any fee is set. This is a bespoke surveying service shaped to each scheme.
I have worked with CHP for a number of years, obtaining advice from them with regard to daylight and sunlight. They provide exactly what our clients require and work closely with us to resolve any issues, should they arise.
- Andrew Ryley , DLBP
Instructing early saves cost later. Where a Lambeth scheme is borderline against BRE 209 reference values, a few adjustments to massing, fenestration, or boundary treatment can move it back into range without losing accommodation. Submitting without an assessment and then being asked for one at validation by the London Borough of Lambeth lengthens the planning timeline and can force a redesign at the worst possible moment for the project programme.
The 2 to 3 week turnaround means the report fits within most planning programmes without slowing submission. Reports follow BRE 209 (2022), and the free initial assessment runs through scope before any fee is set, so an early read on whether a full study is needed costs nothing to obtain at this stage.
Get in touch.
Head Office
2-6 Boundary Row
London, SE1 8HP
Essex Office
2-6 Boundary Row
London, SE1 8HP
020 3714 4090
Get in touch.
Head Office
2-6 Boundary Row
London, SE1 8HP
Essex Office
2nd Floor, 10 High Street
Wickford, Essex
SS12 9AZ
020 3714 4090
enquiries@chpsurveyors.com
