Which City of London postcodes does this drawing package service cover?
Every City of London postcode district we draw in, the stock that dominates
it and the authority that validates a drawing package there. City of London fees below are the
statutory England rates for 2026, not drawing package estimates.
| Postcode | Area | Dominant stock | What it means for a drawing package |
|---|
| EC1A | Smithfield | Mostly commercial, residential lofts | EC1A covers Smithfield only; City of London Corporation handles the drawing package. |
| EC2Y | Barbican | Listed Brutalist apartments (Barbican Estate) | Barbican sits wholly inside EC2Y, so City of London Corporation validates every drawing package submitted from an EC2Y address. |
| EC3N | Tower Hill / Aldgate | Very limited residential — Barbican Estate (listed post-war) | EC3N covers Tower Hill / Aldgate only; City of London Corporation handles the drawing package. |
| EC4M | St Paul's | Mostly commercial, listed residential | St Paul's sits wholly inside EC4M, so City of London Corporation validates every drawing package submitted from an EC4M address. |
| EC4V | Blackfriars | Very limited residential — Barbican Estate (listed post-war) | A drawing package at an EC4V address in Blackfriars is determined by City of London Corporation under its own Local Plan policies for Blackfriars. |
| EC4Y | Temple | Very limited residential — Barbican Estate (listed post-war) | Temple sits wholly inside EC4Y, so City of London Corporation validates every drawing package submitted from an EC4Y address. |
| EC2A | Shoreditch | Warehouse conversions, modern infill | A drawing package in Shoreditch may land with Hackney Council or City of London Corporation — EC2A crosses the boundary, and the EC2A policies map decides it street by street. |
How does a drawing package differ street by street across City of London?
Roof pitch, wall build-up and plot depth change every few City of London
streets, and each one changes what a drawing package can achieve at that address.
- Barbican (EC2Y) — drawing package work in Barbican means listed brutalist apartments (barbican estate). Barbican is Brutalist listed estate. City of London Corporation decides the Barbican application, and Barbican Centre anchors the Barbican location plan.
- Smithfield (EC1A) — drawing package work in Smithfield means mostly commercial, residential lofts. Smithfield is Georgian and Victorian commercial. City of London Corporation decides the Smithfield application, and Smithfield Market anchors the Smithfield location plan.
- Fleet Street (EC4) — drawing package work in Fleet Street means mostly commercial, residential conversions. Fleet Street is Georgian and Victorian commercial. City of London Corporation decides the Fleet Street application, and Royal Courts of Justice anchors the Fleet Street location plan.
- St Paul's (EC4M) — drawing package work in St Paul's means mostly commercial, listed residential. St Paul's is Listed heritage commercial core. City of London Corporation decides the St Paul's application, and St Paul's Cathedral anchors the St Paul's location plan.
How do conservation areas and Article 4 affect a drawing package in City of London?
City of London conservation designations: there are 27 across City of London Corporation, Smithfield, Fleet Street, Whitefriars among them. Designation costs a City of London owner the permitted-development route: a drawing package then needs a £548 householder application over 8 weeks, in place of the £249 prior approval route that takes 6 weeks. Fleet Street is the City of London designation that most often changes a drawing package design.
Article 4 and your City of London drawing package: Multiple Article 4 Directions around office-to-residential, demolition, and shopfront changes. At a EC1A address that matters twice over, because City of London Corporation applies the direction unevenly across City of London — we read the City of London policies map for the exact EC1A address before quoting architectural drawings.
The building fabric around City of London: Very limited residential — Barbican Estate (listed post-war), Golden Lane Estate, modern luxury flats; overwhelmingly commercial. Overwhelmingly commercial; residential planning extremely constrained; listed building density the highest of any London borough. A drawing package in City of London is scoped against that stock first, because it decides whether the scheme runs as permitted development, a £274 Lawful Development Certificate, or a full £548 application to City of London Corporation.
Who decides a drawing package on the edge of City of London?
- Islington — cross the City of London boundary and Islington Council takes the drawing package instead, applying 40 conservation areas of its own around N1. We re-price architectural drawings at the City of London edge because Islington policy and City of London policy rarely align on drawing package depth.
- Hackney — adjoining City of London, with 29 conservation areas centred on E2. A drawing package on the far side of the City of London line is determined by Hackney Council, so the City of London quote for architectural drawings is checked against Hackney guidance before it is issued.
- Tower Hamlets — the Tower Hamlets boundary runs against City of London, so a drawing package a street from City of London is decided by Tower Hamlets Council instead. Tower Hamlets runs 58 conservation areas across E1 and its neighbours, which is why architectural drawings priced for City of London are re-checked against Tower Hamlets policy whenever the City of London address sits on that edge.
- Southwark — cross the City of London boundary and Southwark Council takes the drawing package instead, applying 43 conservation areas of its own around SE1. We re-price architectural drawings at the City of London edge because Southwark policy and City of London policy rarely align on drawing package depth.
Sources for this City of London drawing package page: borough policies maps and
conservation-area registers (2025–26), Royal Mail postcode district boundaries,
the Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications) (England) Regulations, the Town
and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015 as amended,
and the Party Wall etc. Act 1996.
