Air conditioning in London Colney
We install, service and repair air conditioning in London Colney, Napsbury Park and the homes along the old A6. Most of the village is 1930s and post-war terraces, semis and flats, so here's how they, the riverside conservation area and Napsbury's own planning conditions shape an install.
- bridge over the Colne built
- 1774
- listed entries in the conservation area
- 14
- London Colney and Napsbury Park
- AL2 1
- single room, from
- £1,850
St Albans district in official figures
- households (2021 Census)
- 58,990
- live in a flat
- 23 in 100
- live in a house
- 76 in 100
- listed building entries
- 835
Of 58,990 households in the 2021 Census, 76 in 100 lived in a house (26 detached, 30 semi-detached, 20 terraced) and 23 in 100 in a flat. Most installs here are on houses, where a back or side wall is usually the simplest place for the outdoor unit.
In a conservation area an outdoor unit can't go on a wall or roof facing a road without planning permission, and an Article 4 direction can remove permitted development rights altogether. Check your postcode to see whether either applies to your street.
Figures for the whole St Albans district council area. Sources: ONS Census 2021, table TS044 (accommodation type); Historic England's National Heritage List entries within the council boundary, through planning.data.gov.uk (one entry can cover several buildings). Checked October 2026.
A river crossing on the road to Holyhead
London Colney grew up where the main road from London to Holyhead forded the River Colne. The council's conservation area statement finds 'Colneye' in a charter of 1335 and records 26 inns at one time, serving coaches on their first stop after the climb from Ridge. Travellers used the ford until a seven-arched brick bridge was built in 1774. It's listed as Telford Bridge, although the statement says it is apparently not by Thomas Telford.
In 1851 the village had just over 300 people, mostly farm workers and straw plaiters. Two large housing developments started in the 1930s and the village grew rapidly after the war, to the north and east. Today it spreads for over a mile along the old A6, between the M25 to the south and the A414 to the north, with no obvious centre.
London Colney homes and what they mean for an install
The ONS counts about 7,930 people in the London Colney built-up area (Census 2021). Unlike most places around St Albans, terraces and flats make up most of its homes.
| Type of home | Share of homes (2021) | What it means for the install |
|---|---|---|
| Terraced houses on the 1930s and post-war estates | About 30% | Outdoor unit on the back wall or a ground pad in the garden, with the pipes straight through the wall behind the indoor unit. |
| Flats and maisonettes | About 30% | Freeholder consent first. Permitted development allows one heat pump per block, with an outdoor unit up to 0.6 m³. |
| Semi-detached houses | About 30% | A side wall usually works. A multi-split cools two or three bedrooms from one outdoor unit. |
| Detached houses | About 10% | Room for a multi-split or two outdoor units, since a detached house can have two heat pumps under permitted development. |
| Cottages by the river and the High Street | A small group in the conservation area | Most sit at the pavement edge, so the unit goes at the rear. Many are listed, which means consent first. |
Planning: St Albans City and District Council
London Colney has its own parish council, but planning applications go to St Albans City and District Council. A heating-capable outdoor unit on a house is often permitted development if it isn't used only for cooling, is no bigger than 1.5 m³ and passes the MCS 020(a) noise check of 37 dB(A) at neighbours' windows. Outside a conservation area it can't go on a wall facing a road above the ground floor. Our planning guide covers every rule.
The council's Local Plan, adopted in September 2026, names London Colney the district's third largest settlement after St Albans and Harpenden, and puts it in the Small Town tier. It also plans more homes and a new secondary school here, as set out below.
The London Colney conservation area
The conservation area was designated in 1974 and amended and extended in 2010. It covers the old village by the ford and bridge: the triangular green on Waterside, short stretches of Barnet Road and the High Street, and Riverside, where St Peter's Church was built in 1825. The council lists 14 entries inside it, all Grade II, and a longer list of locally listed cottages.
Most buildings stand at the pavement edge with few front gardens, so a unit on a wall facing the road is out without permission. In a conservation area, a unit also can't sit in the garden closer to the road than the house. A rear wall or a base in the back garden, with neat pipework, is the usual answer. The council's Article 4 list doesn't include London Colney.
- Barnet Road: The Bull, Briar Cottage and Berkeley House
- High Street: Telford Bridge, the London coal duty marker of 1861 to 1862, Nos. 1 to 5 and Nos. 27 to 33
- Waterside: The Green Dragon, Colne House, Riverside Cottage and Waterside House
- Riverside: St Peter's Church
Napsbury Park
Napsbury Park, west of Shenley Lane, is in London Colney parish. It was built as the Middlesex County Asylum, designed by Rowland Plumbe and opened on 3 June 1905, with grounds laid out by William Goldring. The hospital closed in 1998 and the site became housing. It has been a conservation area since 1996, the park is a Grade II registered park and garden, and a blanket Tree Preservation Order covers the area.
The council's 2019 statement explains that some permitted development rights at Napsbury were removed by conditions on the original redevelopment permission, not by an Article 4 direction. The lists cover side windows, extensions, roof changes, outbuildings and garage conversions, depending on the road. Heat pumps aren't on them, but we check the conditions for your road and keep the unit and pipes clear of protected trees.
- Azalea Close, Boyes Crescent, Farm Crescent, Lovett Road, Strawberry Crescent and Wistaria Drive: side windows, extensions, outbuildings and garage conversions
- Beningfield Drive, Spinney Row, Lime Tree Court, Academy Court, Norris Close and Rosemary Drive: extensions, roof changes, outbuildings and garage conversions
New homes planned in and around London Colney
The Local Plan allocates these sites. If you buy a new home on one of them, ask whether its planning permission removes any permitted development rights, and send us the plot plan before you choose a position for the outdoor unit.
- West of London Colney (B6): about 324 homes, including a 70 to 80 bed nursing home, next to land set aside for a new secondary school
- South west of the allotments (U2): about 28 homes
- 104 High Street (UC20): about 21 homes, beside the listed Golden Lion
- Berkeley House, Barnet Road (UC27): about 8 homes in and around the listed house
Air conditioning for London Colney businesses
The Local Plan protects four employment areas here: Coldharbour Lane, the Hertfordshire Business Centre on Alexander Road, the Riverside Estate and Watling Street. We fit and service systems for offices, workshops, showrooms and server rooms on these estates, and for the shops on the High Street and in the retail area south of the village.
Wall units suit smaller rooms and shops. Ceiling cassettes suit offices with suspended ceilings. Commercial installs are done in business hours, and we service and repair most brands, keep F-Gas records for systems that need them, and regas a system only once the leak is found and fixed.
What air conditioning costs in London Colney
Our starting prices are the same here as across Hertfordshire and London. Home prices include VAT. Business prices are plus VAT. The survey turns them into a fixed written price.
- from£1,850inc. VAT
A bedroom or study
2.5 kW wall unit, 5 m pipe, fitted in a day
- from£2,050inc. VAT
A living room
3.5 kW wall unit
- from£3,650inc. VAT
Two rooms, one outdoor unit
Multi-split
- from£5,100inc. VAT
Three rooms
Multi-split
- from£2,350inc. VAT
Floor-standing unit
2.5 kW console
- from£1,795+ VAT
Commercial wall unit
Fitted in business hours
- from£2,750+ VAT
Ceiling cassette
In a suitable suspended ceiling
- from£119inc. VAT
An annual service
Keeps the manufacturer warranty valid
Areas and postcodes we cover
We cover the whole village and the places around it, including:
- AL2 1: London Colney, the High Street, Barnet Road, Waterside and the estates either side
- AL2 1: Napsbury Park
- AL4 0: Colney Heath, a separate parish to the north-east, also in St Albans district
- Nearby: Shenley and Radlett (Hertsmere), Park Street, How Wood and St Albans
London Colney questions
Do I need planning permission for air conditioning in London Colney?
Often not, if the unit also heats and meets the size, position and noise limits. You need permission for a cooling-only unit, a listed building, or a unit on a road-facing wall in the conservation area by the river. Applications go to St Albans City and District Council.
I live in a terraced house on one of the estates. Where does the unit go?
Usually on the back wall or a small base in the rear garden, with the pipes through the wall behind the indoor unit, so nothing shows inside. A bedroom starts from £1,850 including VAT, with a 5 m pipe run.
Can I have air conditioning in my London Colney flat?
Often, yes. You'll need the freeholder's consent, and permitted development allows one heat pump per block with an outdoor unit up to 0.6 m³. A ground-floor flat with a garden is the easiest. We'll tell you what the lease and the building allow at the survey.
My house is in Napsbury Park. Is it different?
Yes, in two ways. It's in a conservation area, so the unit can't face the road, and some rights were removed by conditions on the redevelopment permission. Those lists don't name heat pumps, but we check the conditions for your road and the protected trees before we quote.
How much is air conditioning for three bedrooms?
A multi-split cools three rooms from one outdoor unit, from £5,100 including VAT. Two rooms start from £3,650. On a terrace, the outdoor unit usually goes on the back wall, with the pipes running to each room inside the walls or along the back of the house.
Do you service and repair existing systems?
Yes. An annual service starts at £119 including VAT, plus £59 for each extra indoor unit on the same visit. We repair most brands, whoever fitted them, and confirm the cost of the repair visit when you book. Surveys and visits are booked at least a week ahead.