The London County Council's Approach to Town Planning: 1909-1945

The problems and issues which have arisen in respect of the present planning system in England have led to calls for a fundamental review of its scope, objectives and outcomes. In view of the growing importance of planning history this article reviews the LCC's approach to town planning between 1909 and 1945. Doubts were expressed about the relevance of town planning schemes bearing in mind that most of the land in the county lay outside the scope of the Housing, Town Planning, etc., Act, 1909. It was not until 1924 that the Council approved the preparation of town planning scheme (TPS) No. 1 (Streatham) and TPS No. 2 (South-East). By 1934 it had approved the preparation of a further sixteen planning schemes which covered some 24,000 acres of the 76,000 acres of the county. Following the election of the Labour Party the Council authorised the preparation of TPS No. 19 (County of London) which covered a further 51,507 acres and brought the whole of the county under interim planning control. It was approved by the Minister in 1935 following a three week public inquiry. These schemes ensured that new buildings observed reasonable standards of light, air and density which most landowners accepted. In 1941 Lord Reith, the Minister of Works and Buildings, encouraged the Council to prepare a plan for the future physical development of the county. The Council authorised the preparation of a plan by Professor Patrick Abercrombie and Mr John Henry Forshaw, the Council's architect. The County of London Plan 1943 was formally approved by the Council in 1945 and underpinned the 1951 Development Plan prepared by the Council in accordance with the provisions of the Town and Country Planning Act 1947.