®Planning appeal decision
St. Thomas Yard, Holywell Lane, Upchurch, Sittingbourne, ME9 7HP
Planning appeal 3220060 at St. Thomas Yard, Holywell Lane, Upchurch, Sittingbourne, ME9 7HP (Swale Borough Council) was allowed on 12 August 2022 by Inspector King T, following a hearing. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: whether the proposal represents an acceptable form of development having regard to national policy, and the objectives of the development plan in respect of gypsy and traveller accommodation.
‘Change of use of land for the stationing of caravans for residential occupation with associated hardstanding, steps to the mobile homes, fencing, utility building, cesspools and new access without compliance with Condition 1 of the 2002 appeal
- Authority
- Swale Borough Council
- Appeal type
- minor · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Hearing
- Development
- caravan-gypsy · Minor traveller and caravan pitches
- Inspector
- King T
- Postcode
- ME9 7HP
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- whether the proposal represents an acceptable form of development having regard to national policy, and the objectives of the development plan in respect of gypsy and traveller accommodation
- the effect on the character and appearance of the area, having regard to the site's degree of visibility from surrounding land, any cumulative effects arising from the development, and also the positioning and scale of the access point from Holywell Lane
What decided it
The substantial weight attached to the appellants' personal circumstances and the significant unmet need for gypsy and traveller accommodation outweighed the limited harm to character and appearance.
the significant weight given to unmet gypsy and traveller accommodation need and the substantial weight given to the appellants' personal circumstances outweighed the limited harm to the character and appearance of the area
What the Inspector cited
- Development plan policies
- DM10DM24DM26CP4
- National Planning Policy Framework
- Paragraph 8Paragraph 79Paragraph 80Paragraph 174
- Judgments
- South Cambridgeshire DC v SSCLG & Brown [2008] EWCA Civ 1010
How the Inspector dealt with each one is set out in the app, in order: the development plan, national policy, housing land supply, other considerations and the planning balance, beside the letter.
See how each was appliedThe decision letter
Town Planner Pro holds this letter. The Appeals plan opens it and every other letter we hold, all of them searchable, with the main issues and what decided each case picked out. We do not show letters on the free site because they carry people’s names and addresses.
With an account
What an account adds to this decision
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The main issues, what decided it, the planning balance and the policies and judgments listed as cited are read from the published letter by Town Planner Pro and are our summary, not the Inspector’s words; the letter itself is the record. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Research, not advice.