Air conditioning in Lambeth

Converted houses, estates and new towers

In the 2021 Census, 51.6 per cent of Lambeth households lived in a purpose-built block of flats and 20.6 per cent in a flat or bedsit in a converted or shared house. Only about a quarter lived in a whole house. A third of households rent from the council or a housing association.

Converted houses are the Lambeth puzzle. In a Victorian terrace in Brixton, Stockwell, Kennington or Herne Hill split into flats, the back wall and garden usually belong to the freeholder or the ground-floor flat, not the flat that wants cooling. We work out the pipe route and outdoor position first, then you get the freeholder's consent, and sometimes your neighbour's agreement for access.

Council-built estates in Brixton, Stockwell and Kennington need the landlord's consent for leaseholders, and the outdoor unit usually goes on a balcony. The new towers around Vauxhall have managing agents with their own rules on balconies, plant space and working hours. Whole houses in Streatham, Clapham and West Norwood are simpler: the unit goes at the back, on the ground or the back-addition wall.

Planning in Lambeth

Planning questions go to Lambeth Council. It decides applications against the Lambeth Local Plan 2021, adopted in September 2021, and a review of that plan is under way.

For a house that isn't listed, a heating-capable unit can often go in without planning permission under Class G of the national rules, as rewritten from 29 May 2025, if it meets the size, position and noise limits, including 37 dB(A) at a neighbour's window. A cooling-only unit can't. Flats are tighter: the national rules allow one heat pump per block of flats, with an outdoor unit no bigger than 0.6 m³. If the building already has one, or the unit would face a road in a conservation area, you need planning permission.

62 conservation areas and nine Article 4 directions

Lambeth Council lists 62 conservation areas, covering about 30 per cent of the borough. In a conservation area, no unit can go on a wall or roof facing a road without planning permission.

Nine of them, in whole or in part, also have Article 4 directions removing some permitted development rights for external alterations: Albert Square, Hyde Farm, Lansdowne Gardens, Leigham Court Estate, Park Hall Road, St Marks, Stockwell Park, Streatham Lodge and Vauxhall. Lambeth also has Article 4 directions on some changes of use, including houses to small shared houses. The council suggests checking the constraints tab for your address in its planning database.

• Waterloo, South Bank, Lower Marsh, Roupell Street, and Mitre Road and Ufford Street
• Kennington, Vauxhall, Vauxhall Gardens, Walcot, Albert Square and St Marks
• Stockwell Park, Stockwell Green, Lansdowne Gardens, Larkhall and Hackford Road
• Brixton, Brixton Road, Loughborough Park, Ferndale Road, and Rush Common and Brixton Hill
• Clapham, Clapham High Street, Rectory Grove and Abbeville Road
• Streatham Common, Streatham High Road and Streatham Hill, Telford Park and Leigham Court Estate
• Herne Hill, Brockwell Park, West Norwood, Gipsy Hill and Hyde Farm

Shops, restaurants and offices

Lambeth's businesses range from offices around Waterloo and Vauxhall to restaurants, bars and shops in Brixton, Clapham High Street, Lower Marsh and Streatham High Road. We fit wall units and ceiling cassettes, and service and repair existing systems in business hours.

Many of these high streets are conservation areas, so a new outdoor unit for a shop or restaurant usually needs planning permission and careful siting at the rear. We provide the drawings and sound data.

Parking, the Congestion Charge and working hours

Lambeth can only suspend bays inside its controlled parking zones. A standard suspension needs at least 10 working days' notice and costs £57.55 per space per day plus a £98.83 admin fee, with a surcharge on suspensions of six days or more. The faster short-notice options can't be used for building or renovation work. If your job needs a suspension, the fee goes on your quote.

The north of the borough, including Waterloo and the South Bank, is inside the Congestion Charge zone. Its southern edge follows Kennington Lane, so we check TfL's map for addresses in Kennington and Vauxhall. The ULEZ covers all of London.

Lambeth's hours for building work are 8am to 6pm on weekdays and 8am to 1pm on Saturdays, with none on Sundays or bank holidays. We keep drilling inside those hours.

Prices in Lambeth

Our standard prices. Home prices include VAT and business prices are plus VAT. Planning drawings, long pipe runs through converted houses and access equipment are quoted after the survey.

• A bedroom or study

  2.5 kW wall unit, 5 m pipe, fitted in a day

  from£1,850inc. VAT

• A living room

  3.5 kW wall unit

  from£2,050inc. VAT

• Open plan or a loft

  5 kW wall unit

  from£2,450inc. VAT

• Two rooms, one outdoor unit

  Multi-split

  from£3,650inc. VAT

• Commercial wall unit

  Fitted in business hours

  from£1,795+ VAT

• An annual service

  Keeps the manufacturer warranty valid

  from£119inc. VAT

Neighbourhoods we cover

We work across the borough, including the SE1, SE11, SE24, SE27, SW2, SW4, SW8, SW9 and SW16 postcodes:

• Waterloo, the South Bank and Lambeth North
• Kennington, Oval and Vauxhall
• Stockwell and Brixton
• Clapham and Clapham Park
• Streatham, Streatham Hill and Brixton Hill
• Herne Hill, Tulse Hill, West Norwood and Gipsy Hill

Lambeth questions