Which postcode districts around Ealing do we cover for scheme inside an Article 4 area work?
Where the constrained stock actually sits. Ealing is an interwar and Edwardian borough before it is anything else — 22.9% of its 149,870 homes date from the 1930s and 15.6% from 1900 to 1918 (VOA council tax stock, 31 March 2025) — and the HMO directions sit over the parts of it with the largest Edwardian houses. Fees named below are the statutory England rates for 2026, not our charges.
| Postcode | Area | Dominant stock | What it means for a scheme inside an Article 4 area |
|---|
| UB5 | Northolt | 1930s semi-detached, post-war estates | UB5 covers Northolt only; Ealing Council handles the scheme inside an Article 4 area. |
| UB6 | Greenford / Perivale | 1930s semi-detached | A scheme inside an Article 4 area at an UB6 address in Greenford / Perivale is determined by Ealing Council under its own Local Plan policies for Greenford / Perivale. |
| NW10 | Willesden / Harlesden / Kensal Green | Modern apartments, post-war estates | NW10 is shared ground. An address in Willesden, Harlesden or Kensal Green may sit with Brent Council or with Ealing Council, so establish which one will validate the scheme before an NW10 drawing set is prepared — the two apply different Local Plans to the same street pattern. |
| W4 | Chiswick / Bedford Park | Arts & Crafts villas (listed) | W4 straddles a boundary: Chiswick / Bedford Park addresses fall to Hounslow Council or Ealing Council, so confirm which authority validates the scheme inside an Article 4 area before submitting W4 drawings. |
| W3 | Acton | Victorian and Edwardian terraces | A scheme inside an Article 4 area in Acton may land with Ealing Council or Hounslow Council — W3 crosses the boundary, and the W3 policies map decides it street by street. |
| W5 | Ealing | Edwardian villas, Victorian terraces | W5 is Ealing proper. The application goes to Ealing Council and is judged against the borough's Local Plan policies for Ealing itself, so there is no boundary question to settle before drawings start. |
| W7 | Hanwell | Edwardian villas, 1930s semi-detached | W7 covers Hanwell. Ealing Council is the determining authority, applying its Local Plan policies for Hanwell, where the conservation area boundary decides far more than the postcode does. |
| W13 | West Ealing | Edwardian terraces | W13 is West Ealing, wholly inside the borough. Ealing Council determines the application and applies its own Local Plan policies for West Ealing, with no neighbouring authority to consult first. |
Which Ealing neighbourhoods suit a scheme inside an Article 4 area best?
One number to plan the programme around, because the headline flatters this council. Ealing decided 98.6% of householder applications inside eight weeks, second fastest in London — but that figure is measured on 1,822 cases out of 3,182, because it agreed an extension of time on 48.9% of all its decisions and extended cases fall out of the count. Assume ten to fourteen weeks, not eight.
- Acton (W3) — a scheme inside an Article 4 area in Acton starts from victorian and edwardian terraces, and Acton reads as Victorian and Edwardian terraces. Most applications on these Victorian streets are householder applications validated on existing and proposed plans in W3. Ealing Council assesses Acton scheme inside an Article 4 areas against its own Acton character guidance, and the location plan we draw for Acton references Acton Town.
- Hanwell (W7) — Edwardian villas, 1930s semi-detached defines Hanwell, where edwardian villas, 1930s semi-detached set what a scheme inside an Article 4 area can do. Edwardian houses here typically need the same householder set plus a roof plan where a dormer is proposed across W7. Any Hanwell scheme inside an Article 4 area is validated by Ealing Council, with Hanwell viaduct the usual Hanwell reference point on the site plan.
- West Ealing (W13) — scheme inside an Article 4 area work in West Ealing means edwardian terraces. West Ealing is Edwardian terraces. Edwardian houses here typically need the same householder set plus a roof plan where a dormer is proposed throughout W13. Ealing Council decides the West Ealing application, and West Ealing station anchors the West Ealing location plan.
- Southall (UB1, UB2) — Edwardian terraces, post-war estates defines Southall, where edwardian terraces, post-war flats set what a scheme inside an Article 4 area can do. Edwardian houses here typically need the same householder set plus a roof plan where a dormer is proposed across UB1. Any Southall scheme inside an Article 4 area is validated by Ealing Council, with Southall Broadway the usual Southall reference point on the site plan.
- Greenford (UB6) — a scheme inside an Article 4 area in Greenford starts from 1930s semi-detached, and Greenford reads as 1930s semi-detached. On these 1930s semis the prior approval route often replaces a full application in UB6. Ealing Council assesses Greenford scheme inside an Article 4 areas against its own Greenford character guidance, and the location plan we draw for Greenford references Greenford station.
- Northolt (UB5) — 1930s semi-detached, post-war estates defines Northolt, where 1930s semi-detached, post-war estates set what a scheme inside an Article 4 area can do. On these 1930s semis the prior approval route often replaces a full application across UB5. Any Northolt scheme inside an Article 4 area is validated by Ealing Council, with Northolt Tube the usual Northolt reference point on the site plan.
- Bedford Park (W4) — a scheme inside an Article 4 area in Bedford Park starts from arts & crafts villas (listed), and Bedford Park reads as Arts & Crafts garden suburb, conservation. Most applications on these Victorian streets are householder applications validated on existing and proposed plans in W4. Ealing Council assesses Bedford Park scheme inside an Article 4 areas against its own Bedford Park character guidance, and the location plan we draw for Bedford Park references Bedford Park Estate.
How do conservation areas and Article 4 affect a scheme inside an Article 4 area in Ealing?
Conservation areas covering Ealing: the council runs 30 of them, and Bedford Park, Acton Green and Hanwell are the ones owners here run into most often. Layer an Article 4 direction over a conservation area and permitted development is gone twice over, which turns a £249 prior approval decided in six weeks into a £548 householder application decided in eight. Weigh that £299 difference against the median Ealing sale price — £532,750 across 2,819 transactions in 2025, up 2.5% on the £520,000 median of the year before (source: HM Land Registry Price Paid, 2025 transactions, consulted this month) — and the fee stops looking like the expensive part. The design work is. In Pitshanger a scheme inside an Article 4 area is read off the street elevation before anything else about it.
Article 4 and your Ealing scheme inside an Article 4 area: Article 4 for HMOs in specific streets in Acton, Ealing and Southall. At a W3 address that matters twice over, because Ealing Council applies the direction unevenly across Ealing — we read the Ealing policies map for the exact W3 address before quoting scheme inside an Article 4 areas.
The building fabric around Ealing: Victorian and Edwardian villas in Ealing central; 1930s semi-detached in Northolt and Hanwell; mansion blocks along main roads; Bedford Park is a listed Arts & Crafts garden suburb. Leafy outer-west London; Bedford Park conservation area has strict heritage controls; rest of borough generally permissive. A scheme inside an Article 4 area in Ealing is scoped against that stock first.
Who decides a scheme inside an Article 4 area on the edge of Ealing?
- Hounslow — cross the Ealing boundary and Hounslow Council takes the scheme inside an Article 4 area instead, applying 30 conservation areas of its own around W3. We re-price scheme inside an Article 4 areas at the Ealing edge because Hounslow policy and Ealing policy rarely align on scheme inside an Article 4 area depth.
- Hillingdon — the Hillingdon boundary runs against Ealing, so a scheme inside an Article 4 area a street from Ealing is decided by Hillingdon Council instead. Hillingdon runs 29 conservation areas across HA4 and its neighbours, which is why scheme inside an Article 4 areas priced for Ealing are re-checked against Hillingdon policy whenever the Ealing address sits on that edge.
- Brent — cross the Ealing boundary and Brent Council takes the scheme inside an Article 4 area instead, applying 22 conservation areas of its own around NW2. We re-price scheme inside an Article 4 areas at the Ealing edge because Brent policy and Ealing policy rarely align on scheme inside an Article 4 area depth.
- Hammersmith and Fulham — the Hammersmith and Fulham boundary runs against Ealing, so a scheme inside an Article 4 area a street from Ealing is decided by Hammersmith & Fulham Council instead. Hammersmith and Fulham runs 45 conservation areas across W6 and its neighbours, which is why scheme inside an Article 4 areas priced for Ealing are re-checked against Hammersmith and Fulham policy whenever the Ealing address sits on that edge.
Sources for this Ealing scheme inside an Article 4 area 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.
