NEWS: 25th March 2026, Updated 5th April 2026
Wandsworth Council's planning department recently issued Planning Contravention Notices.
AH Peck's Managing Director advised the author that they have relinquished use of garages at Garden Royal.
For more information, see About Regulators, Wandsworth Council.
Note that Chiltern Doors continue to use a garage . . .
Background data
This is referenced in the original report: click here.
Rental values
A phone call on 16th October with a well known firm of property sales and letting agents in Putney reveals that the "going rate" for letting out a garage on a [supposedly] wholly residential estate similar to Garden Royal is £250 per month.
A lessee who sold her flat in January 2023 sold her garage [No 24] separately to the Lessee of flat 36. The rental reported in 2020 was £150 per month.
Garages rented out by Lessee of Flat 41
Given that this has been going on for a long long time, and the "perpetual cover up", data is necessarily sketchy.
There are 36 garages. 9 to the rear of Block A's back Garden. A block of 11 opposite these. To the side of the garden to Blocks B and C, nearer to the access road a Block of 6, and beyond them two blocks of 5.
See the marked up screen capture from Google Maps aerial view taken in 2025.
Indications:
- The first record found is a news letter from Messrs Bells for December 2008, and is recorded in "The Report, Principal Unlawful Instructions at Garden Royal, Leasing out of Garages". From this one can conclude that two garages were let out viz re furniture and motor cycle repairs.
Probably garages numbered: 3 [Flat 41], and another unknown one. - Two elderly lady lessees were helped by the Lessee of Flat 41. Their garages were then let out. This brings the total to four. One can imagine the "don't worry about your garages" conversation.
Probably garages numbered: 23 [Flat 23], and 30 [Flat 30].
Noted that the lessee of Flat 23 who owns Garage 23 has informally confirmed that the garage is let out, despite having only been purchased on 21 June 2024. - A telephone conversation with flooring company AH Peck in 2022 by Townsend-Rose confirmed that they rent five garages from Ms Charalambous, and pay in cash monthly. It is known that they sublet one garage to a firm of decorators, who when contacted were not aware that commercial use of garages is not allowed.
- Perpetual parking by a van in front of garages 1 [Flat 4], 2 [Flat 20] and 3 [Flat41] indicates that garages 1 and 2 are probably let out as well. This brings the total to seven at the least.
- A recent parking Complaint re Garage 5 [owned by Flat 13] which is managed by the lessee of Flat 41 suggests that this garage is also let.
Other garages rented out
- Two other garages are known to be let out to "friends" at a non-commercial rate, and can thus be considered as being covered by the "de minimis" rule.
Minutes of AGM 17th June 2022
Under Item 8 Any Other Business, the Eighth section reports the folloowing sentence:
RQ [Lessee] queried whether the lease allowed for commercial use of the garages. He complained there was a lot of traffic, with various vans coming and going, using the garages as a workshop. DC [Thoxoula Charalambous] clarified that under the lease, the garages could not be used for business purposes, or for trading on site to take place. EV [Eszter Varszegi - JCF Property Management Ltd] added that many owners used their garages to store items or rented them out, but we are not aware of anyone trading from their garages in breach of the lease.
One might ask "Why are what are obviously downright lies from Thoxoula Charalambous acceptable ?"
Photographic Evidence
There are two sources of photographs - namely screen captures from Google Maps, and Lessees. Some of those relied on are shown below. The first photo is a marked up aerial view showing the garages and their numbers, and garage 2 in use. Subsequent photos are in garage number order and show them in use [viz nos: 11, 16, 18, 22, 23 & 30], apart from the last two which are probably of garage 11.
On a statistical basis one asks what is the chance that an occasional visit to garage 27 is photographed at the same time as a regular visit to garages 1 to 3, and probably 5 ? And then for the vehicle operating for Google Maps street view to capture a Pecks Van at garage 18 . . . ?
The answer is extremely remote, but in seems that fates are on the side of the researchers !
Other Evidence - Garage Report 2nd November 2020
The following statement was made:
Garage No. 12 - Although the garage was in use for storage it was possible to see significant stepped cracking,
It is not known whether this garage is / was rented out for commercial storage or not.
Possible Income from Garage Rentals
Nota Bene: Warning
This assessment is pure supposition. There is no evidence of actual rental values.
The values used are based on the rental values suggested above.
The photos and history tend to suggest the that in the last fifteen years, probably a minimum of five garages have been let out, but maybe as many as twelve. This would indicate a gross income since 2008 of between £125,000 and £200,000. The current annual income is probably between £10k to £15k.
Who knows ?
The arithmetic behind these figures is simply too dodgy to publish.
The intention is to show quite simply that Garden Royal is being milked.
The Section 20 notice regarding "Wiring of Garages" was it would appear simply a mechanism to enable the letting of garages on a "including lighting and small power". The electricity charges are paid as a communal charge via the Service Charges. See The Report, Principal Unlawful Instructions at Garden Royal, and scroll down to Garage Wiring.
Possible Savings in Parking in contravention of the Rules
That the van that is habitually parked by garages 1 to 3, probably saves in excess of £1,000 per annum for a residents on street parking permit for a commercial van.
Of course IF fines had been raised, then these would have amounted to probably in excess of some £70,000.
Under Item 8 Any Other Business, the Eleventh section of the Minutes of AGM 17th June 2022, the parking of thevan associated with Thoxoula Charalambous was brought up.
Again one might ask the question as to why Thoxoula Charalambous is allowed to blatantly disregard the Graden Royal rules on parking ?