Community initiated placemaking provides benefits for both communities and planning practice, however, barriers challenging the projects still exist. This research investigates the barriers, how they impact projects, and considers how they can be overcome. Assisting in filling a gap in the current field of study, this research is based in a London context, investigating a range of project types and exploring barriers from both the placemakers and local planning authority perspectives. Using a qualitative research strategy, semistructured interviews collected data from three community placemakers and one council officer. The data was thematically analysed generating four themes and nine sub-themes and developed into a framework synthesising the barriers. The framework demonstrates that common barriers involve resources, systems and processes, project team or people networks. These barriers have a multitude of negative impacts on the community placemaking projects and participants, threatening the projects' longevity and sustainability. Therefore, there are areas for improvement in planning and placemaking practice upon which recommendations have been made. The framework developed from this research can guide placemakers to understand the barriers they may encounter and can be adapted for future research.