®Planning appeal decision
Church Field South West of St Mary Magdalen Church, Whatlington Road, Whatlington
Construction of a church car park and erection of a detached dwelling, land southwest of St Mary Magdalen Church, Whatlington
- Authority
- Rother District Council
- Appeal type
- minor · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Written Representations
- Development
- residential · Minor Dwellings
- Inspector
- Parker C
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- The effect of the proposed development on the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB)
- The effect of the proposal on the setting of the Grade II* listed building; St Mary Magdalen Church
- Whether the proposal represents a sustainable form of development with regard to settlement boundaries and accessibility to services
What decided it
The unacceptable adverse effect on the High Weald AONB and less than substantial harm to the setting of the Grade II* listed church, which provide clear reasons for refusal under NPPF paragraph 11(d)(i) notwithstanding the absence of a five-year housing land supply.
The benefits of housing delivery and the enabling development argument for funding a church car park were outweighed by the harm to the AONB and the setting of the listed heritage asset, and the absence of enforceable mechanisms to secure the public benefits claimed.
Framework references: 11, 56, 79, 105, 174, 176, 200, 202
Plan policies cited: Policy EN1 of the Rother Local Plan Core Strategy 2014, Policy OSS4 of the Rother Local Plan Core Strategy 2014, Policy RA2 of the Rother Local Plan Core Strategy 2014, Policy RA3 of the Rother Local Plan Core Strategy 2014, Policy OSS2 of the Rother Local Plan Core Strategy 2014, Policy OSS3 of the Rother Local Plan Core Strategy 2014, Policy TR3 of the Rother Local Plan Core Strategy 2014, Policy DEN1 of the Development and Site Allocations Local Plan 2019, Policy DEN2 of the Development and Site Allocations Local Plan 2019, Policy DIM2 of the Development and Site Allocations Local Plan 2019
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.