Barratt London and Transport for London’s property company Places for London had their application to build nearly 300 homes next to High Barnet Station rejected by Barnet Council in December reports David Floyd

The entrance to High Barnet tube station — High Barnet Station

Campaigners opposing a High Barnet housing development rejected by councillors fear the scheme could be given the go ahead after it was ‘called in’ by the Mayor of London.

The scheme proposed by developers Barratt London in partnership with Transport of London’s property company Places for London would’ve seen 283 new homes across five block of flats build on High Barnet Station car park, which is owned by TfL.

However, in December, Barnet Council’s strategic planning committee voted eight to one to reject the plans, with concerns around height being the main focus of councillors’ decision to refuse the application.

However, the Mayor of London has the ultimate power to intervene on major planning decisions in London and it was announced in January that the decision had been ‘called in’ and will now be considered by deputy mayor of London, Jules Pipe.

In a post on The Barnet Society website, Robin Bishop, planning and environment lead for The Barnet Society, urged local politicians including Chipping Barnet MP Dan Tomlinson and London Assembly member Anne Clarke (who is also a member of Barnet Council’s cabinet) to make their positions clear.

He wrote: “We expect candidates seeking election to Barnet Council in May in wards in and around High Barnet will be asked by residents whether they are for or against the blocks of flats being proposed on the tube station car park. For some voters this will be a critical issue.”

He also posted a letter, co-authored with Gordon Massey, a planning consultant for Barnet Residents Association, to Tomlinson, Clarke and Barnet councillors, highlighting the “conflict of interest” involved in the mayor and his colleagues taking a decision on a scheme in which TfL is directly involved.

The letters says: “Our principal concern at this point is the clear conflict of interest since the Mayor controls Transport for London, which not only owns the site and runs the tube and bus services connecting it to our neighbourhood, but has commissioned the project and stands to profit from its construction. That is setting, writing and marking your own homework.

“If approved, the application will have a most harmful impact on the town and its nearby green spaces, and set a benchmark for future development in the area. Visualisations in the application were cynically manipulated to downplay its deplorable visual impact.”

The decision to call-in the High Barnet proposals mirrors the mayor’s approach following Barnet Council’s decision to refuse the application for development of the Great North Leisure Park in North Finchley, which was also taken in December.

The hearings are expected to take place after May’s local elections.

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