®Planning appeal decision
Land south of Lower Road, Stalbridge , Dorset
outline planning application for the erection of up to 114 dwellings, up to 2,000 sqm of employment space (use class b1, with up to one use class a1 unit), vehicular access points and associated works
- Authority
- Dorset
- Appeal type
- major · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Inquiry
- Development
- residential · Major dwellings
- Inspector
- Aston R
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- Whether the proposed development would provide a suitable site for housing, having regard to local planning policies that seek to manage the location of new development, access to services and facilities and accessibility by a range of modes of transport.
- The effect of the proposal on the character and appearance of the appeal site and area.
- If harm and conflict with the development plan is identified, whether this would be outweighed by other material considerations.
What decided it
The significant benefit of boosting housing and affordable housing supply in the context of a 3.3-year housing land supply outweighed the moderate harm and policy conflicts identified, tipping the tilted balance in favour of the proposal.
The moderate harm to character and appearance and conflict with the development plan's spatial strategy was outweighed by the significant benefits of market and affordable housing delivery, together with modest economic, biodiversity and connectivity benefits, so that the adverse impacts did not significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits.
Framework references: 9, 11
Plan policies cited: Policy 2, Policy 3, Policy 6, Policy H6, Policy 7, Policy 11, Policy 15, Policy 20, Policy 24
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.