Pook Barn Pookbourne Lane, Sayers Common, HASSOCKS, BN6 9HD

new dwelling within footprint of former barn – following expiry of prior approval DM/16/0714

Authority: Mid Sussex District Council
Appeal type: minor · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Hearing
Development: residential · Minor Dwellings
Inspector: Blackwell J

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

Whether the location of the development is sustainable, with regard to the development plan and other material considerations.

What decided it

The cumulative weight of material considerations - particularly the similarity to the lapsed Prior Approval, self-build status, and sustainability/biodiversity benefits - outweighed the limited harm from conflict with the development plan.

The limited/very limited harm arising from conflicts with Policies DP6, DP12 and DP15 was outweighed by the similarity to the lapsed Prior Approval, the self-build nature of the scheme, sustainable construction techniques, biodiversity enhancements, and other material considerations.

Plan policies cited: Policy DP6, Policy DP12, Policy DP15, Policy HurstC1, Policy HurstC3, Policy HurstH1, Policy HurstH6

Read the decision letter on the Inspectorate’s site

The main issues and the deciding factor are read from the published letter by Town Planner Pro; the letter itself is the record. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Research, not advice.

What an account adds

Draw a red line around your site and the appraisal follows.

Heritage. Listed buildings by grade and distance, conservation areas, scheduled monuments, registered parks and gardens, heritage at risk.
Landscape and environment. Green belt, national parks and national landscapes, SSSIs, ancient woodland, SPA, SAC and Ramsar sites, nutrient catchments.
Flooding. Flood zones 2 and 3, surface water, and both again with climate change.
Transport. The 800 metre station catchment and service frequency, bus stops with their weekday frequency, the cycle network, and the Framework’s transport tests measured for the site.

Then the development plan position, the housing land supply as an Inspector last accepted it, and every appeal decided around the site with its letter.

Every English appeal since 2016, with the letter behind it wherever the Inspectorate published one. Searched by meaning as well as by words, with the key case law counted live across the letters.

Casework that chases the deadlines. Applications, appeals and conditions with their statutory dates.

The judgement stays yours. The tool gathers the material and dates it.