Documents

London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom with a total
population of 9,002,488. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a
50-mile (80 km) estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major settlement for two
millennia.

MAPS OF LONDON

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https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d7/United_Kingdom_relief_location_map.jpg/662px-
United_Kingdom_relief_location_map.jpg

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https://www.mapsofworld.com/united-kingdom/london-city-map.html

https://candaceabroad.com/london-neighborhood-guide/

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https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Stephen-
Syrett/publication/242491659/figure/fig16/AS:669488424951822@1536629887261/Londons-sub-regions-2006.png

https://tomholderness.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/london_ukmap_landcover_300dpi.jpg

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https://democracy.cityoflondon.gov.uk/documents/s103835/Appendix%201%20Draft%20Plan.pdf

https://democracy.cityoflondon.gov.uk/documents/s103835/Appendix%201%20Draft%20Plan.pdf

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https://www.mapsinternational.co.uk/pub/media/catalog/product/800x/c/e/central-london-street-wall-map_uk00029.jpg

https://democracy.cityoflondon.gov.uk/documents/s103835/Appendix%201%20Draft%20Plan.pdf

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 https://cdn.britannica.com/57/22557-050-5416230D/growth-London-1990.jpg

https://www.mapmania.org/map/82394/historical_growth_of_the_london_urban_area
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Documents
Doc1

https://data.london.gov.uk/dataset/londons-population
Doc2

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Doc3

London’s urban sprawl by Leo Gregory, Hampton School

30th April 2020
https://www.thisislocallondon.co.uk/youngreporter/18418475.londons-urban-sprawl-leo-gregory-
hampton-school/
In London, this uncontrolled horizontal growth of urban cities is encroaching on adjacent
natural and agricultural land that is necessary to local food systems. Alongside land loss, there
is of course habitat loss and reduction in biodiversity. The introduction of invasive species and
increased occurrences of flooding can also be resultant effects. On top of that, increases in urban
heat islands, where areas of land become significantly higher in temperatures as a result of
increased human activities could lead to severe health repercussions, such as increased risk of
mortality for elders.

Doc4
The edges of cities are known as the rural urban fringe. There has been increasing building in
these areas because of housing pressure, despite Greenbelt legislation (laws) that are supposed
to prevent building there. Urban sprawl can have many impacts on these areas: Extra cost to
the tax payer – the public help to pay for infrastructure such as roads and water works to allow
building developments to go ahead; Increased Traffic – extra people in these areas means that
cars are used more often, which means that there is more traffic on the roads, and there is also
more air pollution and more accidents; Health Issues – people in these areas often have to
commute to work which means that they often travel by car. This can have negative impacts on
people’s health such as high blood pressure; Environmental Issues -sprawling cities consume
land, and this displaces animals from their habitat; Impact on Social Lives – people in sprawling
communities can often live further from their neighbours, this can cause isolation.
https://www.coolgeography.co.uk/gcsen/London_Challenges.php

Doc5

In Defense Of Sprawl
London's sprawl was attacked just like sprawl today. Although the middle-class families
moving into those row houses were thrilled to have homes of their own, members of the artistic
and intellectual elite were nearly unanimous in their condemnation. They castigated the row
houses as ugly little boxes put up by greedy speculators willing to ruin the beautiful countryside
in order to wrest the last penny out of every square inch of land. They were confident that they
would become slums within a generation. The Duke of Wellington spoke for many when he
denounced the railroads that made these suburban neighborhoods possible as only encouraging
“common people to move around needlessly.”
Of course, today these neighborhoods are widely considered to be the very essence of central
London, the kind of place that the current elite feels must be protected at all cost from the
terrible development going on at the new edge of the city. And so it has gone with every major
boom period in urban history, from the ancient Romans until today. As each new group has
moved up to newer and better housing by moving out from the central city, there has always
been another group of individuals ready to denounce the entire process.

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(…)There is no reason to assume that high-density living is necessarily more sustainable or
liable to damage the environment than low-density living. If everyone in the affluent West were
to spread out in single-family houses across the countryside at historically low densities (and
there is plenty of land to do this, even in the densest European counties), it is quite possible,
with wind, solar, biomass and geothermal energy, to imagine a world in which most people
could simply decouple themselves from the expensive and polluting utilities that were necessary
in the old high-density industrial city. Potentially, they could collect all their own energy on-
site and achieve carbon neutrality.
(…) Certainly sprawl has created some problems, just as every settlement pattern has. But the
reason it has become the middle-class settlement pattern of choice is that it has given them
much of the privacy, mobility and choice once enjoyed only by the wealthiest and most
powerful.
https://www.forbes.com/2007/06/11/defense-sprawl-suburbs-biz-
21cities_cx_rb_0611sprawl.html?sh=2c78ccf15277

Doc6

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Doc7

Doc8
In British town planning, the green belt is a policy for controlling urban growth. The idea is
for a ring of countryside where urbanisation will be resisted for the foreseeable future,
maintaining an area where agriculture, forestry and outdoor leisure can be expected to prevail.
The fundamental aim of green belt policy is to prevent urban sprawl by keeping land
permanently open, and consequently the most important attribute of green belts is their
openness.

Doc9
The Green Belt is intended to check further growth of large built up areas (sprawl), to prevent
neighbouring towns from merging into one another, and to preserve the special character of
towns. Inside a Green Belt, approval should neither be given, except in very special
circumstances, for the construction of new buildings, or for the change of use of existing
buildings, nor for purposes other than agriculture, sport, cemeteries, institutions standing in
extensive grounds, or other uses appropriate to a rural area.
The main benefit of protected land relates to the purpose of the protection, that is to say –
avoiding urban sprawl.
- Avoiding the costs of urban sprawl Urban sprawl has multiple economic costs, including
increased travel costs; decreased economic vitality of urban centres; increased tax burdens due
to more expensive road and utility construction and maintenance; increased car use leading to
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 higher air pollution and increased health care costs for diseases like asthma, and loss of
productive farmland and natural lands that support tourism.
- Two-thirds of all Green Belt land is in agricultural use; not surprising given its proximity to
potential markets in the city. This is a vital economic resource for food security and soil
protection.

In recent years, the benefits are understood to extend further:

- Recreation, sport, health Green Belt protection has ensured Londoners enjoy open land and
countryside in and near the city. Many areas of Green Belt are country parks or playing fields,
they support sport and recreation, tourism and health – including reducing stress by providing
peaceful, breathing spaces and 9,899km of public rights of way
- eco-system benefits Different types of open land provide multiple eco-system benefits which
include urban cooling, improved air quality, flood protection and carbon absorption (especially
woodland areas), as well as local food production.
- Future proofing As London grows into a higher density city, so more people come to rely on
protected green spaces for the many benefits they provide. Land protection policy recognises
that these protected lands may be, and in fact stipulates that they should be, enhanced to provide
more benefits in future.

https://londongreenbeltcouncil.org.uk/about-londons-green-belt/£

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Doc10

The consensus for green belt reform is growing – so too

is the pressure for Government to act
Politicians and campaigners from across the political spectrum are coming together to push for
changes to green belt policies
published on 11 May 2018 by Anthony Breach on centreforcities.org

(…) Centre for Cities has come together with Siobhain McDonagh MP, and 60 other signatories
from across the political spectrum, to submit an open letter today calling for reform of green
belt restrictions.
Specifically, the letter called for green belt land that’s within 1km of train and tube stations and
45 minutes away from Zone 1 London to be released for new homes. We reckon this could
supply enough land to build 1 million homes, more than enough for London’s needs over the
next ten years.
(…) Releasing some land in these areas would help address the fundamental problem
underpinning the housing crisis in successful cities such as London: supply. For years our cities
have not been able to release enough land to accommodate their population and economic
growth. This shortage has pushed the average house price in London up to almost 17 times local
incomes – compared to five and a half times local incomes in Liverpool, for example – despite
London’s higher wages.
Moreover, the green belt does not just restrict housing supply around London, it also results in
housing development leapfrogging the green belt, and being built in areas far away from
London (on the other side of the green belt). That means longer commutes for people working
in London, and it’s also bad news for the environment, as it results in more carbon-intensive
journeys into the capital each day.
What needs to change
The reality is that releasing more land in or near London where we can build more homes is
the only way we can tackle the capital’s housing shortage, and this is exactly what our joint
letter proposes.
Crucially, it also suggests releasing new land in the right places. Land next to train and tube
stations is exceptionally valuable, especially that on lines heading into London. If we allowed
people rather than bushes to live in these areas closer to the city, we’d be able to minimise
new infrastructure costs and commuting by car. In combination, we could make housing more
affordable, support economic growth in high demand cities, and help the climate from
reduced future carbon emissions
https://www.centreforcities.org/blog/consensus-green-belt-reform-growing-pressure-government-act/

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Doc11

London: Is it time to build on the green belt to meet housing

demand?
By Tom Edwards, Sam Francis & Leana Hosea
BBC London- Published 31 August 2021
According to its supporters, London's green belt is the ultimate guarantee that the land is
kept green and pleasant. But as pressure on housing in London increases is it time to build
on the green belt?
(…) Rob Hayward, a tenant farmer and former Conservative councillor, has farmed on
Enfield’s fields for generations. He is worried the council will try to move into the green belt
and build homes.
"These are the lungs of London," Mr Hayward said. "You have only got to look at how beautiful
it is. It's fantastic but I'm worried it's not just my livelihood but my children's livelihood. It's
our home and everything."
(…) Sweeping changes to England's planning rules, announced by Prime Minister Boris
Johnson, would allow building on the green belt, but only in "exceptional circumstances".
But, according to the London Green Belt Council, there are currently plans to build more than
233,000 new houses in the green belt - a 200% increase in developments since 2016.
(…) City Hall estimates London requires about 66,000 new homes a year to provide enough
properties to be ready for expected population growth.
This target has never been achieved in the 21-year history of the mayor of London.
In 2018-19, the last financial year with complete figures, about 36,000 new homes were built,
according to the London Development Database. Of these, 6,500 were affordable homes.
(…) Jonathan Seager, from London First, argues politicians need a more nuanced approach to
the green belt. "We want to keep the green belt. It is a concept that keeps us merging into other
cities," he said." But not all of the land within the green belt is pleasant, green and accessible.
Politicians need to think carefully about the type of land which is in the green belt - look at sites
on the green belt which are brownfield sites1, or of low quality, close to existing stations, which
could be potentially be developed with the local community." https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-
london-58331413

1
A brownfield site is an area that has been used before and tends to be disused or derelict land.
Such sites are usually abandoned areas in towns and cities which have been used previously for
industrial and commercial purposes.
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