Glossary
Section 106 agreements on larger London developments
A legal agreement attaching obligations to a planning permission. Major schemes only.
A legal agreement attaching obligations to a planning permission. Major schemes only.
A section 106 agreement is a planning obligation entered into under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, binding on the land and its successors. It secures things a condition cannot — affordable housing, financial contributions, restrictions on occupancy — and is negotiated rather than calculated.
CIL is a fixed formula per square metre, non-negotiable, and applies to floorspace. A section 106 obligation is negotiated, site-specific, and must meet three statutory tests: necessary to make the development acceptable, directly related to it, and fairly and reasonably related in scale and kind.
The two cannot be used to charge twice for the same infrastructure item.
Rarely for an extension. It arises where a new dwelling is created — a garden plot, a subdivision, an outbuilding conversion — and the borough seeks a car-free agreement removing the right to a residents' parking permit, a carbon offset payment, or occasionally an affordable housing contribution.
Car-free agreements are near-universal for new dwellings in inner London and are registered as a local land charge, so they bind future owners.
Yes. After five years, an application can be made to modify or discharge an obligation, with a right of appeal. Before that, variation is by agreement with the authority. A deed of variation is the usual instrument.
Section 106 agreement in a Croydon context: London Borough of Croydon (Croydon Council) runs 24 conservation areas including the South Norwood Conservation Area and the Crystal Palace Conservation Area, and there is no borough-wide Article 4 direction, so permitted development generally survives outside conservation areas. That decides how section 106 agreement is handled: £548 and 8 weeks for a Croydon householder application, or £274 for the Lawful Development Certificate that records section 106 agreement as lawful. The law behind section 106 agreement sits in the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, the GPDO 2015 and the Building Regulations 2010.
| Legal basis | Section 106, TCPA 1990 |
|---|---|
| Binding on | The land and successors in title |
| Statutory tests | Necessary, directly related, fairly and reasonably related |
| Common London obligation | Car-free agreement for a new dwelling |
| Variation | By agreement, or by application after 5 years |
| Registered as | Local land charge |
Almost never. They attach to new dwellings and larger schemes.
Only by variation with the authority, or by application after five years.
No. CIL is a formula; a section 106 obligation is negotiated.
Pick a slot that suits you. No obligation and no sales pressure, just straight answers on your planning route.
