I just read the following on the London Branch page......
To ensure fairness, changes have been made to the allocation of applications to better ensure cases are processed in the order that they are received and that the oldest applications, no matter where they are submitted, are processed first. This has meant changes to the number of places allocated to the London branch based on the age of the applications held there. This has had an impact on the length of time before a case can be allocated to a case officer in the London branch.
For these reasons, applications will take up to 15 months to be allocated to a Case Officer after being accepted. Once allocated, the average processing time frame will be four to six months, unless there are complicated health or other issues to determine. Please note that the times given for allocation and decision are indicative only and may be subject to change.
This is better than the 2 years it was stating a couple of months ago!!! Good news all around I would say!