Judicial review launched by local resident will no longer go ahead after Barnet Council’s Labour administration dropped contentious part of Hendon Hub plans, reports Simon Allin, Local Democracy Reporter

Residents campaigning against a large-scale development in Hendon have reached a settlement with Barnet Council after it dropped a controversial planning blueprint.

A judicial review brought by Hendon resident Richard Lecoat will not go to trial after the council withdrew the supplementary planning document (SPD) it had previously drawn up to guide development in the area.

The council has agreed to pay “the majority” of the costs of bringing the legal challenge, according to campaign group Save Hendon.

The Hendon Hub scheme – a plan to build student flats and facilities for the University of Middlesex on council-owned sites surrounding The Burroughs – was revealed in 2020 alongside the SPD, which set out a planning framework for the area.

Richard applied for a judicial review arguing that the SPD was actually a development plan – which requires much greater scrutiny and consultation – and was therefore unlawful. When the Hendon Hub proposals were finally presented to a planning committee in January last year, council officers said the SPD had not been given any weight in the determination of the applications.

Two months later, a judge granted permission for the judicial review. But the hearing was delayed after Labour took control of the council in May and reconsidered the local authority’s position. Save Hendon said that the council subsequently elected to withdraw the SPD entirely, making the document “null and void” and rendering a trial “meaningless”.

Richard said it was “disappointing” that the case did not go to trial and that he was “fully confident” the document would have been declared unlawful. But he added that the “primary goal of shooting down the SPD was achieved”.

He continued: “The Hendon Hub development was conceived by the previous Tory administration. The new Labour administration has made some encouraging noises regarding the degree to which they will listen to residents but many questions remain unresolved and we, as residents, will certainly continue to press the council for answers.”

Although the Hendon Hub scheme was awarded planning permission, the campaigners claim to have scored a number of successes.

After the new Labour administration took charge of the council, the town hall dropped plans to turn Grade 2-listed Hendon Public Library into a business school for the university. Instead, the library building will undergo a programme of refurbishment.

Campaigners say the withdrawal of the SPD means other developers cannot use the planning document to support new applications for proposed schemes in Hendon.

The council has also pledged to create a partnership board to allow members of the community to work with the local authority on issues relating to the Hendon Hub scheme. But Save Hendon says it has received no further information on this matter since the board was announced in October.

Richard offered his “wholehearted thanks” to everyone who helped with his legal challenge and members of the local community who provided “encouragement and support”. He added: “I think it fair to say that the last year-and-a-half has brought the Hendon community closer together, and for that I am glad.”

Barnet Council has been approached for comment.

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