Kingston upon Thames / Planning, sources and design
Air quality assessment in Kingston upon Thames
Plan your Kingston upon Thames air quality assessment around local roads, representative monitoring and the development programme. ACP supports planning evidence, monitoring and mitigation for projects across the borough.
Connect current policy with the actual street, occupied receptors and construction phases.
Discuss your projectCurrent local requirements
Adopted policy, validation and relevant supplementary documents.
Evidence in its setting
Automatic stations, diffusion tubes and clearly qualified trends.
Coordinated design
Exposure, transport, plant and phased construction considered together.
01 / Local context
Road junctions, town centres and phased redevelopment
Kingston’s assessment context includes the A3 and Tolworth junctions, town-centre roads, Surbiton, New Malden and phased redevelopment. The council’s annual report shows why the exact street and monitoring position matter: nearby sites can record different concentrations, and construction or temporary road arrangements can affect the evidence.
Tolworth and the A3 corridor
Check junction geometry, queues, occupied façades and intake heights. The Tolworth Roundabout tube and Broadway automatic station represent different roadside positions; use their siting details rather than treating them as interchangeable.
Kingston town centre
Cromwell Road evidence needs its local context. The council notes the bus-station closure until November 2024 when discussing results. A lower annual concentration does not, on its own, establish a lasting change in emissions.
Cambridge Road and phased occupation
The report identifies major phased construction near Cambridge Road monitors. Consider occupied phases, demolition, HGV movements and neighbouring receptors together.
Surbiton, New Malden and quieter settings
Review the relevant local tube, street geometry and use. A town-centre or background value does not automatically represent a road-facing bedroom, school or proposed intake elsewhere in the borough.
AQMA: Defra records the whole borough as designated from 2 January 2003 for NO₂ and PM₁₀. Keep designation status separate from current monitor results and the requirements of the actual proposal.
02 / Monitoring and trends
Read the local pattern behind the wider decline
The latest report linked by the council covers 2024 and was published in August 2025. Both plotted tubes were lower than in 2018. Tolworth fell again in 2024, while Cambridge Road / Gloucester Road remained at 28.6 µg/m³. The chart describes observations and does not attribute the change to one intervention.
Annual NO₂ / 2018–2024
A longer decline, with different recent patterns
Annual objective: 40 µg/m³
Tolworth Roundabout
Tube 13 · kerbside
29.4µg/m³2024 annual mean
Cambridge Road / Gloucester Road
Tube 39 · kerbside
28.6µg/m³2024 annual mean
Shared 0–80 µg/m³ scale · council-reported, bias-adjusted NO₂ at each monitoring location, before distance correction to a receptor.
Read the annual values
| Year | Tolworth tube 13 | Cambridge Road tube 39 |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 65.1 | 46.8 |
| 2019 | 60.5 | 43.5 |
| 2020 | 42.7 | 35.2 |
| 2021 | 45.6 | 35.1 |
| 2022 | 40.7 | 32.7 |
| 2023 | 35.3 | 28.6 |
| 2024 | 29.4 | 28.6 |
2024 capture was 99.5% at tube 13 and 90.3% at tube 39. Other nearby sites did not all follow the same direction: tube 12 at Tolworth Broadway rose from 22.6 to 24.8 µg/m³, with 65% capture and annualisation. Use the source notes and representative receptor position. Read Tables D–E and the discussion.
03 / Network and interpretation
Match the pollutant, year and monitoring location
| 2024 automatic site | NO₂ (µg/m³) / capture | Particles (µg/m³) / capture |
|---|---|---|
| Tolworth Broadway KT4 | 22.2 / 76.4% | PM₂.₅ 9.4 / 85.6%; PM₁₀ channel replaced |
| Cromwell Road KT5 | 30.0 / 99.8% | PM₁₀ 23.2 / 95.9% |
| Kingston Vale KT6 | 16.6 / 84.7% | PM₁₀ 15.7 / 95.8% |
Diffusion tubes extend the picture
Table E lists 42 numbered locations, including two removed sites with no 2024 result. Forty locations have a reported 2024 NO₂ value. Keep the historical register separate from the active measurement network.
Different pollutants answer different questions
NO₂ tubes do not measure particles or construction dust. The Tolworth particle channel changed from PM₁₀ to PM₂.₅ in 2022. Do not join those different pollutant series into a single trend.
Combine representative council evidence with Defra borough data and appropriate modelled backgrounds. Label ratified annual observations, provisional live readings and modelled values separately. Explain capture, bias adjustment and any annualisation.
04 / Planning requirements
Build a traceable local evidence package
Adopted Core Strategy and London Plan
The council’s adopted register lists the 2012 Core Strategy and London Plan 2021, with the town-centre and waste plans where relevant. CS1(b) addresses pollution reduction; CS6 and transport policies support reduced vehicle dependence. Read historic technical references with current guidance. Adopted development plan.
AQA and Neutral validation evidence
The local list, adopted on 1 May 2024, requires AQA and Air Quality Neutral assessment for all major applications. It covers baseline conditions, new exposure and construction and operational sources. It also requests an NRMM inventory commitment and, where applicable, damage-cost evidence. Pages 35–36 of the linked list.
Supplementary documents and the site
The current register lists Residential Design and Sustainable Transport SPDs, with Eden Quarter, Cocks Crescent and Riverside Public Realm documents for their areas. It does not list a dedicated adopted air-quality SPD. Use the relevant documents with current London guidance. Current SPD register.
Assessment scope beyond a checklist
Do not treat a major-application validation entry as proof that a smaller change cannot raise exposure or emissions issues. Identify the actual use, sources, receptor positions and any council request. Separate impact assessment from Neutral benchmarks.
The London air-quality guide connects borough evidence with the wider London policy and tools. Keep applicable Positive design requirements identifiable rather than merging them into a Neutral calculation.
05 / Assessment and design
Four Kingston settings, four practical design briefs
These illustrative briefs show how local evidence can inform a proposal. The starting inputs are the site plan, proposed uses, council request, traffic and plant details, and construction programme.
Tolworth: homes facing the junction
For an illustrative residential scheme near the A3 junction, compare road-facing bedrooms, balconies and proposed intakes at their actual heights. Explain the choice of monitor and any changes in queues or lane arrangements since the baseline year; coordinate ventilation with overheating and noise.
Useful outputA receptor plan, representative baseline and tested layout or intake options.
Kingston town centre: a changed baseline
For an illustrative scheme near Cromwell Road, review whether the 2024 baseline represents the proposed occupation year. The report records the bus station reopening in November 2024. Consider current traffic and bus activity before extrapolating that annual result, and define the uncertainty before commissioning extra monitoring.
Useful outputA dated baseline justification and, where needed, a targeted monitoring brief.
Cambridge Road: occupied phases beside works
For an illustrative phased housing scheme, show which homes remain occupied during demolition and construction. Map haul routes, plant and dust activities against those receptors; coordinate construction controls, monitoring and response arrangements with the programme. The annual report describes nearby phased redevelopment as local context.
Useful outputA phase-by-phase receptor and construction-control schedule.
New Malden: homes above commercial uses
For an illustrative mixed-use proposal, review road exposure alongside proposed kitchen extract, servicing and any combustion plant. Locate discharge points and neighbouring windows or intakes together; coordinate air quality, odour and fan-noise inputs before fixing the layout.
Useful outputA coordinated source inventory and layout showing receptors, intakes and discharges.
Local context: Cromwell Road discussion, ASR page 14 and Tolworth and Cambridge Road discussion, pages 24–25, reporting on 2024 and published August 2025.
Use a shared brief for air quality assessment, noise and odour where the scheme needs combined evidence.
06 / Interactive project checklist
Kingston upon Thames evidence planner
Answer five questions to organise the assessment brief. Choose “Not sure yet” where information is missing; those points remain visible in your results.
Answers stay in this page. The planner organises evidence; it does not certify compliance or decide planning requirements.
07 / Policy horizon
Keep emerging plans and current evidence distinct
The reporting gateway currently links the 2021–2026 Air Quality Action Plan. Check for a successor rather than assuming the end of its plan period changes an application requirement. The annual report’s site-specific limitations remain relevant when selecting a baseline.
The emerging Local Plan covers 2028–2043. The council reports a July–September 2026 main-plan consultation and a separate HRA consultation closing on 9 November 2026, ahead of planned submission in December. These are emerging documents; the council anticipates possible adoption in 2028. Check the current plan and HRA status.
Where development-related emissions could affect protected habitats, coordinate the relevant traffic or combustion pathways with the ecological assessment. A plan-level HRA is context and does not establish clearance for an individual project.
Common questions / Local answers
Kingston upon Thames air-quality FAQs
Is the whole of Kingston in an AQMA?
Yes. Defra records a whole-borough AQMA from 2 January 2003 for NO2 and PM10. The designation is separate from present monitor results and does not replace an assessment of the proposal and relevant exposure.
Which adopted local policy should I use?
The current adopted-plan register lists the 2012 Core Strategy, London Plan 2021 and relevant town-centre and waste plans. CS1 addresses pollution reduction and CS6 addresses sustainable travel. Use current technical guidance alongside these policies.
What does the validation list request?
The list adopted in May 2024 requires AQA and Air Quality Neutral evidence for all major applications. It covers baseline conditions, exposure and construction and operational sources, an NRMM inventory commitment and applicable damage-cost evidence.
What is the latest linked monitoring year?
The council library links the 2024 annual report, published in August 2025. Use its measurement year and site qualifications when selecting a baseline rather than treating the publication year as the monitoring year.
How many diffusion-tube locations have results?
Table E lists 42 numbered locations, including two removed sites without a 2024 result. Forty locations have a reported 2024 NO2 value. The report also identifies three automatic stations.
Why can nearby Tolworth results differ?
The roundabout tube and Broadway station occupy different positions relative to traffic and exposure. Siting, road arrangements and data capture matter. Tube 12 had 65% capture in 2024 and its result was annualised.
Does lower NO2 settle the particle assessment?
No. The pollutants and sources differ. Tolworth changed its particle channel from PM10 to PM2.5 in 2022, so the two series should not be joined as though they measured the same pollutant.
Is the new Local Plan already adopted?
No. The council describes the 2028–2043 plan and HRA as emerging consultation and submission material. Its programme anticipates possible adoption in 2028. Check the current stage when preparing the application.
Kingston upon Thames / Your next step
Discuss your air quality project
Tell us what you are proposing and where you are in the planning process.
What to include
- Site and proposal. Address or postcode, proposed use and approximate number of homes or floorspace.
- Planning stage. Application reference, any Kingston upon Thames Council request or condition, and your target date.
- Local setting. Road exposure, occupied rooms, ventilation, energy plant and construction phases.
- Existing information. Mention available drawings, previous air quality reports and traffic or plant details.
Start with what you have. You can email drawings or council correspondence using the address below.
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Evidence / checked 23 October 2026
Kingston upon Thames guidance and sources
Measurement and publication years are stated beside the results. Check current documents when preparing a submission.
- Current council monitoring and action-plan library
- 2024 monitoring: report published August 2025
- Adopted development-plan register
- Core Strategy 2012: CS1 and sustainable-travel policies
- Current validation gateway
- Local validation list, adopted May 2024
- Adopted supplementary planning documents
- Emerging Local Plan and HRA consultation
- Defra whole-borough AQMA
- Defra local-authority dashboard
- Air Quality Action Plan 2021–2026