The Council for the Independent Scrutiny of Heathrow Airport (CISHA)
CISHA ensures independent oversight of the way Heathrow engages with stakeholders.
The Council and its forums work with stakeholders to make progress on the issues that matter to them. We hold the airport to account and work to help ensure it is the best neighbour it can be. We fulfil the role of Airport Consultative Committee (ACC) as set out in Section 35 of the Civil Aviation Act. For more information on what an ACC is, have a look at our ACC Fact sheet.
In addition, we have particular responsibilities around expansion, which are discharged via the Heathrow Expansion Independent Community Board (HEICEB), which you can read about below.
CISHA is responsible for ensuring constructive and effective engagement between Heathrow Airport and those who are impacted by the airport.
Heathrow Expansion Independent Community Engagement Board (HEICEB)
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HEICEB is the independent community engagement board addressed in the Heathrow Expansion National Policy Statement (HENPS), created to ensure that local communities can contribute effectively to consultations for any expansion at Heathrow.
HEICEB operates as a sub‑committee of CISHA, the Council for the Independent Scrutiny of Heathrow Airport. CISHA fulfils Heathrow’s Airport Consultative Committee (ACC) role, as set out in section 35 of the Civil Aviation Act and named in the HENPS.
HEICEB was established to help ensure that local communities can contribute effectively to the delivery of expansion, including consultations and evidence gathering throughout the planning process. As an independent body, our role is not to take a position for or against expansion, but to help create opportunities for informed, transparent and meaningful engagement, ensuring that community voices are heard.
HEICEB is chaired by Tracey Waltho the CISHA chair.
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The Airports National Policy Statement (ANPS) designated in 2018 requires that the promoter proposing to develop a third runway at Heathrow Airport should work with an independent community engagement board ‘to help to ensure that local communities are able to contribute effectively to the delivery of expansion, including to consultations and evidence gathering during the planning process.’ Relevant extracts from the ANPS are included at Appendix 1.
In 2018, The Heathrow Community Engagement Board (HCEB) was set up to fulfil and deliver the requirements of a community engagement board as set out in the ANPS, in addition to its ongoing role as an airport consultative committee (ACC) under section 35 of the Civil Aviation Act 1982.
In 2020 the community engagement board function was paused and the HCEB continued to deliver its ACC role through a new body, the Council for the Independent Scrutiny of Heathrow Airport (CISHA).
Following the announcement by Government in November 2025 that the northwest runway scheme brought forward by Heathrow Airport Limited (HAL) would inform the ANPS review, and its intention that the third runway should be operational by 2035, the community engagement board function will recommence. These Terms of Reference will be amended as necessary to reflect any relevant changes to the ANPS once designated.
Terms of Reference (click here)
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I am delighted to have recently joined the Heathrow Expansion Independent Community Engagement Board (HEICEB) as Director. Having spent much of my career working alongside communities to help them influence decisions that affect their lives, I am excited to be bringing that experience to one of the UK's most significant infrastructure projects.
HEICEB was established to help ensure that local communities can contribute effectively to the delivery of expansion, including consultations and evidence gathering throughout the planning process. As an independent body, our role is not to take a position for or against expansion, but to help create opportunities for informed, transparent and meaningful engagement, ensuring that community voices are heard.
Over the past few months, my focus has been on laying the foundations for HEICEB's next phase. This has included developing our strategic direction, strengthening our governance arrangements, meeting with community representatives and local stakeholders, working closely with Government and Heathrow Airport Limited on their consultation plans, and beginning discussions with Heathrow West about how communities can be effectively engaged as their proposals develop.
Looking ahead, our priority is to make it easier for communities to understand what is happening, why it matters and how they can get involved. That includes developing a refreshed approach to communications through Heathrow Expansion Watch, our dedicated source of news, information and updates on the expansion programme.
Above all, I want HEICEB to be recognised as a trusted, accessible and independent source of information and engagement. I am looking forward to meeting many more residents, community organisations and local partners in the months ahead, listening to the issues that matter most to them, and helping ensure communities have a meaningful voice throughout this nationally significant process.
Tony Wong
Heathrow Expansion Watch (HEW)
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Heathrow Expansion Watch (HEW) is the public information arm of the Heathrow Expansion Independent Community Engagement Board (HEICEB).
The Heathrow Expansion Watch website is a dedicated site that brings together information on any expansion of Heathrow Airport, including updates from government and scheme promoters.
CISHA publishes independent review of Heathrow’s sustainability performance
The Council for the Independent Scrutiny of Heathrow Airport (CISHA) has published its 2025 Scrutiny Report, providing an independent assessment of Heathrow Airport’s progress against its sustainability commitments under the Heathrow 2.0 sustainability strategy.
The report focuses on the issues that matter most to local communities, including:
· Noise
· Air quality
· Carbon emissions
· Local jobs and opportunities
· Community impact
While the report recognises progress in areas such as cleaner air initiatives and local employment opportunities, it also highlights concerns where further action is needed. In particular, CISHA identifies risks around Net Zero delivery, worsening noise trends, and the increasing pressure that passenger growth is placing on sustainability targets.
The report calls for:
· Greater transparency and accountability
· Faster progress in key environmental areas
· More timely and independently assured data
· Clearer plans showing how Heathrow will meet its 2030 sustainability goals
CISHA has also recommended the creation of a publicly accessible community dashboard to make sustainability information easier for residents and stakeholders to understand and scrutinise. The report includes a series of recommendations to Heathrow Airport and requests a formal response by 25 June 2026.
Read the full report and press release
Statement from CISHA
Commenting on the release of the Scrutiny Report 2025, Tracey Waltho, CISHA Chair said;
“One of CISHA’s roles is to provide independent oversight of Heathrow Airport’s sustainability performance, by monitoring progress against its strategy, [Connecting People and Planet, Heathrow 2.0.]. We do this because the communities living around Heathrow (along with passengers and workers in and around the airport) are directly impacted by how well the Airport’s sustainability commitments are delivered in practice.
Effective scrutiny shines a light on progress on the issues that matter most to communities, including noise, air quality, jobs and support for local businesses, and community investment activities and since becoming Chair I have signalled my commitment to add rigour to this process – dialling up transparency and accountability.
This report represents a step change in our approach: we have introduced a structured impact and accountability framework and a dedicated focus on Heathrow’s sustainability performance. Together, these developments have enabled a more systematic and rigorous assessment of Heathrow’s performance against its 2030 goals, testing the evidence presented and highlighting the risks to delivery.
I want to take this opportunity to thank our panel of experts and our report lead, together with Heathrow for embracing this process and their commitment to building on this framework in 2026.”
Heathrow Responds
Heathrow has formally responded to CISHA's 2025 Scrutiny Report. The response welcomes independent scrutiny and acknowledges opportunities to improve transparency, stakeholder engagement, data accessibility, and communication of sustainability progress.
Heathrow has also committed to ongoing engagement with CISHA throughout 2026 on key issues including Net Zero, noise, and communities. Read Heathrow’s response.
Independent research commissioned by CISHA has found that
Heathrow's approach to property schemes requires significant improvement.
Key messages
750 homes are at risk of demolition if expansion proceeds
Planning consent is not expected before 2029 at the earliest, extending uncertainty for affected households
Heathrow’s Interim Property Hardship Scheme ranks poorly against comparable national infrastructure schemes.
CISHA Recommendations
CISHA is calling on Heathrow Airport to take immediate action:
Put residents at the centre of property scheme design
Reset hardship criteria to reflect real-life pressures
Provide clear early-exit routes for those needing to move now
Ensure fair, transparent valuations with independent advice
Extend support to renters as well as homeowners
Statement from CISHACommenting on the research and findings CISHA said;
“An important part of our work is not only listening but also asking the questions that help bring focus to the issues which matter to the community. This research work and its findings are vital in helping address the frustration around a scheme which is pivotal to people's lives.”
New research from CISHA highlights the need for improvement of Heathrow Airport’s property schemes as uncertainty continues for households affected by ongoing 3rd runway plans
Thousands of residents living near Heathrow Airport are facing prolonged uncertainty about their homes, with existing property support schemes falling short of their intended purpose. New research published by CISHA finds that, as plans for a potential third runway continue, affected communities may face at least three to four more years of disruption and insecurity.
CISHA’s membership includes six forums that represent stakeholders in and around Heathrow Airport
CAP3149: Heathrow Capacity Expansion – consultation on regulatory policy on early costs
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) consulted on CAP 3149 - Heathrow Expansion Costs. caa.co.uk/cap3149
The Consultation was about whether early planning expenses (like design, environmental studies, legal preparation, and engagement) should be recovered before the Government decides on Heathrow’s expansion.
CISHA submitted a formal response to the CAA's consultation on early costs & Heathrow expansion (CAP 3149) on the recovery of early costs linked to Heathrow’s proposed capacity expansion.
Our Key Messages in Response:
Heathrow’s expansion brings a degree of uncertainty for local communities, with potential effects on property, well-being, and local investment.
The regulatory framework should aim to balance efficiency with fairness, so that community-related investments are not overlooked.
We highlight the value of meaningful community compensation, noting the Airports Commission’s recommendation of more than £1 billion in this area.
Early property-related costs should be managed in a way that gives residents and businesses choice, alongside support for essential local services.
We favour a transparent and fair process for cost recovery, with appropriate oversight to reduce the risk of unnecessary duplication between scheme promoters.
The CAA’s duties to consumers, as well as its wider responsibilities relating to environmental and community matters, should both be taken into account.
CISHA welcomes the CAA’s leadership on this consultation and calls for a regulatory approach that supports both consumers and local communities throughout the expansion process.
View CISHA’s full written response
Posted: 10 September 2025